Living in Forest Hills, Walnut Grove: South of 88 Avenue

South of 88 Avenue, Walnut Grove changes character. The central blocks around the community centre give way to quieter crescents, a forested park and a long wall of Highway 1 along the south edge. This pocket, usually called Forest Hills, is more a way of describing where you live than an official place, and it’s worth knowing that before you search.

Where it is, and what the name means

Forest Hills sits between 88 Avenue and Highway 1, around 212 to 216 Street, taking in 86A Crescent and the streets near Telegraph Trail. The name comes from Forest Hills Park, at 86A Avenue and 214 Street, and from housing listings. The Township has not adopted a separate Forest Hills neighbourhood plan, so there is no official boundary. To its west, the streets around Alex Hope Elementary and Discovery Town Park are often grouped with it, and to the east it meets the Redwoods side along 216 Street. See the Walnut Grove overview for how the names fit together.

Homes

Most homes here date from Walnut Grove’s main growth period. One detached house on 212 Street is recorded as built in 1989, and the townhouses at Chartwell Green, 8737 212 Street, are listed as 1990. Those are examples, not a survey, so we can’t tell you the age of any given street. What matters is the pattern the housing page describes: homes now old enough that roofs, windows, plumbing and strata building envelopes may be due for work. Ask for the maintenance and renewal history, and check the strata’s depreciation report if there is one.

Schools

Alex Hope Elementary, at 21150 85 Avenue, is the English-program school closest to most of Forest Hills. It is K-7 and offers late French immersion in grades 6 and 7. The Ministry’s September 2025 headcount was 575 students, above the 527 capacity recorded in the district’s June 2024 plan, so ask the school how it is managing space for your child’s grade. We can’t tell from public data whether a particular address is in its catchment, so use the district locator with your full address.

École des Voyageurs, at 8736 216 Street, is a public francophone school run by the Conseil scolaire francophone. It has its own eligibility and admission rules, and it is not the automatic English catchment school for neighbours. Walnut Grove Secondary, on Walnut Grove Drive, is the high school for the Walnut Grove elementary schools. The schools page covers French immersion and childcare.

Parks and the reservoir

Forest Hills Park is the main draw: forest trails, a playground, tennis and pickleball courts and washrooms, which makes it different from the open school-field parks nearby. We don’t have a measured loop length or an accessibility audit for the trails. Alex Hope Park, at 85 Avenue and 212 Street, has fields, a playground and trails.

That park is also the site of the Strawberry Hill reservoir replacement. In November 2025, council chose a larger rectangular reservoir along the 85 Avenue frontage and authorized detailed design. It involves tree removal and a change in how the park looks from the street. We could not confirm when construction starts or finishes, so if you live nearby, watch the Township’s project page. The parks page lists the rest.

Getting around

The 509 is the bus most closely tied to this pocket: a weekday commuter loop through 216 Street, Telegraph Trail, 86A Crescent and 212 Street to Surrey, with no regular midday or weekend service. For all-day trips you head to 88 Avenue and the 562, which runs about every 20 minutes on weekdays and hourly on Sundays. Highway 1 is close, with the 216 Street interchange on the east and the 200 Street interchange on the west. The getting around page has the full table.

Shops and services are mostly across 88 Avenue. Walnut Grove Medical is at 21183 88 Avenue, and the main grocery and pharmacy cluster is along 88 Avenue and Walnut Grove Drive. The community centre, library and secondary school are on Walnut Grove Drive, north of 88 Avenue. What looks close on a map may need a crossing, so compare the legal walking route and signal location before calling a home walkable to everything. See shops and services.

What to check

• Highway and road noise. Houses near Highway 1 or 216 Street should be visited with windows open and closed. We found no street-by-street measurements.
• 216 Street. The Township’s Complete Street project covers 88 to 96 Avenue and is still in phased design and funding.
• The catchment. Confirm both the elementary and secondary school for the address.
• Strata and renewal history. Ask about roofs, siding, windows and any special levy for homes built around 1990.