Maillardville and Austin Heights: A Guide to Southwest Coquitlam

Southwest Coquitlam is home to the city's most historic neighbourhood. Maillardville grew up beside a sawmill on the Fraser River more than a century ago, and next door, Austin Heights is growing into a busier, more urban neighbourhood along Austin Avenue. My office is on Austin Avenue, so this part of Coquitlam is home ground for me. Here is what to know about living in both.

The short version

Maillardville: the seed of Coquitlam's growth

In the late 1890s, a lumber mill opened on the north bank of the Fraser at Fraser Mills. In 1909, a group of 110 French Canadians recruited from Quebec arrived to work there, and with a second group in June 1910, Maillardville was born. It is named for Father Maillard, a young Oblate priest from France. The City describes it as one of the few distinct French-Canadian settlements west of Manitoba.

• Laval Square. The symbolic heart of the community. Notre Dame de Lourdes church, built in 1938 and 1939, and the older church hall and priest's house beside it were designated municipal heritage sites in 1989.
• Mackin House. One of the last remaining Fraser Mills homes, it is now a house museum run by the Coquitlam Heritage Society.
• Festival du Bois. Held each March in Mackin Park. The 37th festival ran from March 6 to 8, 2026.
• Maillardville Community Centre. The City's 22,000 square foot centre on Cartier Avenue, twice the size of the one it replaced.

Mackin Park itself has ball diamonds, playing fields, tennis courts, a skateboarding area, a playground, a spray park and a walking trail.

Austin Heights

The Austin Heights neighbourhood plan covers the area roughly from Foster Avenue south to Rochester Avenue, and from Blue Mountain and Joyce Streets east to Linton Street. Austin Avenue is its main street, planned as a mixed-use corridor with shops and offices at street level and homes above.

• The Poirier precinct. The Poirier Sport and Leisure Complex has a 25 m lap pool, a leisure pool, three arenas and a fitness centre. Nearby on Poirier Street are the Poirier Community Centre, the Poirier branch of the Coquitlam Public Library and Centennial Secondary.
• Blue Mountain Park. An outdoor pool, a wading pool, a spray park, a playground, picnic shelters, a ball diamond and tennis and pickleball courts.
• Mundy Park nearby. Coquitlam's largest park, about 400 acres of forest with two lakes, an outdoor pool and kilometres of trails.

How the area is changing

• Maillardville's plan. When the City rewrote the plan in 2014, it set out to keep the neighbourhood's historic character while making room for about 6,000 more residents over 20 to 25 years. Brunette Avenue is planned as a walkable main street with shops and homes. Some areas allow duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes, others townhouses, and the Laval Square and Allard-LeBleu heritage character areas favour smaller-scale homes.
• Austin Heights' plan. First adopted in 2011, it sets a 20-year framework that concentrates new apartments and mixed-use buildings along Austin Avenue.
• Fraser Mills. On the former mill lands by the river, Beedie and the City are building Coquitlam's first waterfront neighbourhood: about 96 acres and around 5,500 homes over 20 to 25 years. The first three residential buildings are under construction and due to finish in 2028 and 2029. Plans include about 16.6 acres of parks, a new elementary school and a community centre with pools due in 2031.
• More homes per lot. Coquitlam's zoning now allows three or four homes on many single-family lots. I explain the rules in More Homes per Lot.

If you are looking at an older home, ask whether it is on the heritage register or designated. A designated property can't be altered, moved or subdivided without a heritage alteration permit from the City.

Schools

Both neighbourhoods are in School District 43. Schools in and around the area include École Rochester Elementary, which offers Early French Immersion, Alderson Elementary, Mundy Road Elementary on Austin Avenue, École Maillard Middle, which runs English and French Immersion programs, and Centennial Secondary on Poirier Street. For a francophone education, the Conseil scolaire francophone's École des Pionniers-de-Maillardville, in Port Coquitlam, teaches kindergarten to grade 12. Catchments depend on your address, so check SD43's school locator.

Getting around

• SkyTrain. Braid Station, at Braid Street and Brunette Avenue in New Westminster, sits just west of Maillardville. Bus routes along Austin Avenue and Poirier Street also connect to Burquitlam, Lougheed Town Centre and Coquitlam Central stations.
• Driving. The Lougheed Highway runs through the area, and Brunette Avenue leads to Highway 1.

Questions buyers often ask me

Where is Maillardville?

In southwest Coquitlam, next to New Westminster, around Brunette Avenue and Laval Square, with Fraser Mills by the river to the south.

Why is it called Maillardville?

It is named for Father Maillard, a young Oblate priest from France. The community grew from 1909, when French Canadians recruited from Quebec came to work at the Fraser Mills sawmill.

When is the Festival du Bois?

Each year in early March, in Mackin Park. The 2026 festival, the 37th, ran from March 6 to 8.

Is French-language schooling available nearby?

Yes. SD43 offers French Immersion at schools including École Rochester Elementary and École Maillard Middle, and the francophone École des Pionniers-de-Maillardville is in Port Coquitlam.

What is being built at Fraser Mills?

A new waterfront neighbourhood of about 5,500 homes, with parks, a school and a community centre. The first three residential buildings are due to finish in 2028 and 2029.

Browse homes for sale in Coquitlam, compare Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam and Port Moody, or read about the north side of the city in Burke Mountain vs Westwood Plateau.

Details are from the City of Coquitlam, School District 43, TransLink, the Conseil scolaire francophone and the Coquitlam Heritage Society at the time of writing. For the area's history, see the City's heritage and history page.