One of the big pushes for Langley City Council is to bring more positive activities into our community. Programming more events and activities benefits our community in three broad ways. It gives people somethings to do, builds a sense of community, and reduces crime.
One of the things that I hear from people regularly is that there is traditionally nothing to do in our community. By providing more positive activities in the community, it gives people a chance to get out and discover their community. Because city-supported activities are subsidized, it also provides opportunity for people who might otherwise not have the funds to pay for other entertainment options like seeing a movie, or going into Vancouver to see a show.
When people get out and about in their community, they start to get to know their neighbourhoods. This builds a sense of ownership in a community. There is a rise in loneliness among Canada’s seniors. Providing opportunities for more social interaction improves seniors’ quality of life. When young people have positive activities they can take part in, they are less likely to take part in negative activities.
Negative elements don’t like being visible. More positive activities draws more people out into the community. This means that there are more eyes and ears in our Downtown, our neighbourhoods, and our parks. This results in less negative activities in our community.
Langley City has been ramping up the number of events, tournaments, and other activities in our community. The following table shows the significant increase over the last three years.
| Events | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Events - City Free | 37 | 24 | 21 |
| Events - City Paid | 7 | 7 | 5 |
| Events - Outside Organizations | 40 | 35 | 25 |
| Tournaments | 12 | 8 | 7 |
| Seasonal Programming | 88 | 37 | 45 |
The following list shows some of the events and activities directly run by the City in 2017. This list doesn’t include events that the City supported, but didn’t run such as the Arts Alive Festival or the McBurney Plaza Summer Series.
- Bike to Work Week
- Canada 150 - Canada in our Backyard
- Canada 150 - Canadian Mosaic Project
- Canada 150 - Canadian National Film Day
- Caroling in the Plaza - 4 dates
- City Walks - 32 sessions
- Community Concerts at the Spirit Square - 2 dates
- Community Day
- Creative Kids - 18 sessions
- Family Day
- Family Fun Day
- Food Truck Festival
- Holiday Chaos
- Langley Walk
- Local Government Day
- Lunch & Lounge in McBurney Plaza - 18 sessions
- Magic of Christmas Festival
- Move for Health Day
- Movie in the Park - 3 dates
- Penzer Youth Action Park Grand Opening
- Pitch-In Day
- Push Play - 20 sessions
- Seniors Week
- Sounds of Summer Concert Series - 9 dates
- Take a Kid Mountain Biking Day
- Youth Halloween Party
- Youth Ugly Christmas Sweater Party
- Youth Week
Another huge success has been the new Timms Community Centre. The following table shows the massive 33% growth in usage between 2016 and 2017.
| Drop-ins (with pass) | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seniors | 36,539 | 26,380 | 9,532 |
| Adults | 53,029 | 40,022 | 29,116 |
| Students | 5,011 | 2,212 | 12 |
| Youth | 17,377 | 12,630 | 5,045 |
| Children | 5,741 | 6,499 | 985 |
| Family | 2,862 | 1,335 | n/a |
| Total - All Ages | 120,612 | 89,078 | 44,690 |
The recently adopted 2018 Langley City budget continues the trend of increasing investment in events and activities in our community. Based on the response seen so far, I’m excited for the coming year.
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