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 Statement
of Significance
Photos: City of Surrey:
Colour, 2007. Black and white,1950.
Construction Date 1949
Description of Historic Place
The Goodmanson Building, which houses
the Round Up Cafe, is a one-storey commercial building located
at the north end of a commercial strip development on the King
George Highway, in the Whalley neighbourhood of Surrey. A prominent
neon sign, reading 'Round Up Cafe', overhangs the sidewalk above
the main entrance.
Heritage Value
Built in 1949, the Goodmanson Building
is valued as a testament to Whalley's origins as an automobile-oriented
service center and as a representation of the type of single-storey
commercial strip development that defined the area's character
for decades. After the Pacific Highway was paved in 1923, Whalley
became a favoured location for auto-based businesses. Local
growth accelerated with the opening of the Pattullo Bridge in
1937 and the completion of the King George Highway in 1940.
After the tolls were removed from the Pattullo Bridge in 1952,
Whalley experienced a major commercial and residential building
boom.
The Goodmanson Building is also significant
as the location of the Round Up Cafe, which has served the Whalley
neighbourhood for over fifty-five years. Len Goodmanson built
the original structure on the property in 1949, housing the
Round Up Cafe, which Goodmanson owned until 1961. Since 1973,
the restaurant has been owned and operated by the Springenatic
family, who have maintained the essential roadside diner character,
appearance and menu. Typical of the era in which it was established,
the large neon sign was a response to the width of the street
and the speed of passing cars, enticing customers with its bold
shape and colours. Such signs have seldom survived in connection
with their original businesses; the Round Up Cafe and its neon
sign are therefore a rare combination. The name of the restaurant
recalls the postwar popularity of Western stories, both in Hollywood
movies and in the emerging medium of television.
Source: City of Surrey Planning Department
Character-Defining Elements
Key elements that define the heritage
character of the Goodmanson Building include its:
- location adjacent to King George Highway with no setback from
front and side property lines
- commercial form, scale and massing as exemplified by its one-storey
height, rectangular plan, central recessed entry and flat roof
- wood frame construction with stone masonry on storefront under
later stucco and aluminum
- prominent projecting 'Round Up Cafe' sign with metal sign
can and neon tubing overhanging sidewalk above main entrance
- plate glass storefront windows
- interior features, such as original seating configuration
and kitchen cupboards
- continuous use as a diner
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