Council Notes: Pavement, Parking, Zoom Meetings, and Deputy Mayor

Over the last week, I’ve posted about the October 18th Langley City Council meeting. Today will be my last post and will cover some of the administrative agenda items.

With the passing of the new Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw, Council repealed its pavement cut policy as it is now covered in the new bylaw. This policy is related to City requirements for restoring pavement when people dig it up, for example, to install utilities.

Council discussed a motion about tandem parking. The discussion about the motion covered topics around on-site and on-street parking management. City staff will be working on an on-street parking management plan in 2022, and Council will likely be approving a new zoning bylaw that will cover on-site parking in early 2022. As such, Council voted not to proceed with the motion.

Due to the gap between expired provincial emergency measures, which allowed Council meetings to be held electronically (via Zoom), and City Council giving final reading to its new Council Procedure Bylaw, Council held in-person meetings in October. Council voted to go back to electronic meetings until further notice. The electronic format will allow more people to attend council meetings and help enhance health protection as the COVID-19 pandemic is still with us.

Council also rotates the Deputy Mayor position among all Councillors. The Deputy Mayor can fill in for the Mayor if she is absent or ill.

The appointment schedule for the next year is:
November 1st - December 31st, 2021 - Councillor Albrecht
January 1st - February 28th, 2022 - Councillor Pachal
March 1st - April 30th, 2022 - Councillor James
May 1st - June 30th, 2022 - Councillor Storteboom
July 1st - August 31st, 2022 - Councillor Wallace
September 1st - October 31st, 2022 - Councillor Martin

New policy places limits on permissive tax exemptions

One of the ways that municipalities can support non-profit organizations and churches is by giving them a permissive tax exemption. Organizations with permissive tax exemptions do not pay property tax.

In Langley City, we grant permissive tax exemptions in an ad-hoc fashion. Granting a permissive exemption results in a slight tax increase for other property taxpayers. Because of these reasons, Council passed a new permissive tax exemption policy at its last meeting.

This new policy will cap permissive tax exemptions to no more than 1.4% of the City’s total property tax revenue. Once this 1.4% limit is reached, all organizations with permissive tax exemptions will see their exemption scaled back by an equal percentage.

In 2022, the City will grant $423,308 in permissive tax exemptions, which equals about 1.35% of total property tax revenue.

The new policy will also limit permissive tax exemptions to no more than $75,000 per individual property.

The largest permissive tax exemption Council approved for 2022 was $63,795 granted to the Roman Catholic Church.

Organizations will now have to submit a new property tax exemptions application form by July 15th each year to be eligible to receive a tax exemption the following year.

In 2023, the new policy will likely result in a scaling back of permissive tax exemptions, and the Roman Catholic Church may hit the $75,000 limit.

Council Notes: Bylaws Given Final Reading on October 18th

In BC, municipalities usually need to give four readings of a proposed bylaw before it is passed and adopted. For most bylaws, the first, second, and third reading of a bylaw can occur concurrently and at the same meeting. When a bylaw is “read,” Council votes on if it should proceed. The final reading of a bylaw must occur at least one day after its third reading. This buffer acts like a sobber second thought for Council and can be used to back out of a bylaw.

For land-use matters in Langley City, the first and second reading of a bylaw occurs at one meeting, a public hearing where anyone can speak about the bylaw on another, third reading on another day after the public hearing, and final reading at yet another meeting.

Last Monday, Langley City Council gave the final reading to the following bylaws. For more information, please select each item to go to the post where I provide more detail.

• Notice Enforcement Bylaw
• Highway and Traffic Regulation Bylaw Amendment (For Notice Enforcement Bylaw)
• Fees and Charges Bylaw Amendment (For Notice Enforcement Bylaw)
• Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw
• Highway and Traffic Regulation Bylaw Amendment (For Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw)
• Municipal Ticket Information System Amendment Bylaw (For Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw)
• Fees and Charges Bylaw Amendment (For Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw)
• Permissive Tax Exemption Bylaw
• Council Procedure Bylaw

Water and Sewer Rates to See Significant Increases

Two times per year, the Metro Vancouver Regional Districts hosts a Council of Councils meeting. This meeting provides an opportunity for all municipal and Treaty First Nations elected representatives to receive updates and ask questions about the regional district's services.

On Saturday, I attended a Council of Councils meeting.

One of the significant discussion points was the escalating costs for water and sewer services. Two primary factors are driving these escalating costs. The first primary factor is that the federal government requires all sewage treatment facilities to adhere to a higher quality standard for treated water discharged into our rivers and ocean. This requirement means that the regional district is essentially rebuilding all the sewage treatment plants in our region.

The second primary factor is to accommodate the growth in our population, which requires increasing water and sewage treatment capacity.

The following slide shows the typical household impact due to these cost drivers.

Overall household impact. Select image to enlarge.

Water, sewage, and solid water fees from the regional district do not directly show up on your property tax bill. Langley City buys water and sewer services from the regional district. The City embeds those costs into the City's water and sewer rates that you pay.

Your waste hauler, which can be the City or be private, pays the solid waste fee.

The regional district is doubling down on its water conservation efforts to reduce the infrastructure needed to accommodate population growth. These efforts include continuing to charge a higher summer water rate.

The regional district is also looking to charge a wet weather rate for sewage. This rate will nudge municipalities to fix their leaky sewer pipes, which allow rainwater to get into them during the winter. This excess water puts unnecessary strain on the sewage treatment system.

Even with this rate increase, Metro Vancouver's water and sewer utilities prices are comparable to other similar-sized regions in Canada.

The following chart shows a high-level breakdown of the regional district's operating budget over five years.

Operating budget. Select image to enlarge.

The following chart shows the capital budget over the same period.

Capital projects budget. Select image to enlarge.

Responsible Consumption of Liquor in Parks Program a Success

From the beginning of July until the end of September, Langley City piloted a responsible consumption of liquor in parks program.

This pilot program ran between 1 pm and 8 pm on Fridays and Saturdays this summer, allowing people to come together with friends and family in McBurney Plaza and within some sections of Douglas Park and City Park to share a drink.

At Monday night's Langley City council meeting, staff presented a report about the pilot program.

The results were positive. Langley City posted a survey to get feedback on people's opinions and experiences around the pilot program. Fifty-four people took part in the survey.

About two-thirds of people who took the survey were supportive of the pilot program, and about three-quarters had "a positive or neutral experience in the designated areas during the pilot program."

Two-thirds of people who took the survey also wanted the City to allow the responsible consumption of liquor in other parks and public spaces.

If the program continues, some other feedback from survey participants includes:

• Expanding the program days or hours
• Providing empties bins
• Providing more bathrooms and more security.

By the numbers, during the first two weekends of operation in July, there were 13 formal complaints about people consuming liquor in unauthorized areas. This dropped to zero for the remaining of the pilot. The largest category of complaints was around smoking which, in my experience, is a common issue in Langley City parks, drinking or no drinking.

People who completed the survey liked the added security in the pilot area. I would imagine people would like this added security regardless of the pilot program.

Overall, the pilot cost was $16,800. Langley City staff will be presenting a next steps report for Council to consider in the new year, which will contain options for continuing the program if Council desires.

I fully support the responsible consumption of liquor in parks program and look forward to it continuing in our community. People were responsible.

For more information about the pilot program, please read the staff report.

Langley City Streetside and Park Bin Waste Audit: First-Step to Divert Materials from Landfill

Langley City has several styles of streetside and park garbage and recycling containers throughout the community. As part of the City’s efforts to divert garbage, organics, recyclable materials, and pet waste from ending up in landfills or incinerated, staff have started a multi-phase process to help understand what people are throwing into streetside and park bins. This audit will help inform the creation of a program to promote a higher success rate in landfill/incineration diversion for bins within parks and on the street.

The first phase was a waste audit that looked at 51 bins of different types from various locations throughout Langley City. The following pie chart shows the overage categories of materials found in the bins.

Overall Primary Category Composition for Garbage Streams. Select chart to enlarge.

The largest category is pet waste. This waste is a concern because the best practice is to depose pet waste in the sewer, as pet waste in landfills contributes to the release of methane gas, a potent greenhouse gas. The City will need to develop a plan to address pet waste as part of future phases of this process.

The second-largest category was organic waste which should be diverted to regional compose facilities.

For the City’s streetside recycling bins, some people put effort into sorting material, but unfortunately, other people discard materials into the wrong bins, preventing recycling. Today, all material, including in the recycling bins, end up in landfills or incinerated as the rate of the inappropriate materials in each bin is around 50%.

Contamination Categories by Stream. Select chart to enlarge.

Now that the City knows the baseline of our streetside and park garbage and recycling containers, the next step will be to develop a pilot program to ensure that the City can get materials into the correct streams, whether for recycling, composting, pet waste, and garbage.

Council will have the option of including an $85,000 budget item next year to implement a pilot program. If the pilot program is successful, the City could implement a new streetside and park waste management plan as early as 2023.

Public Hearing: Apartment Project and Industrial Project

Last night, Langley City Council hosted a public hearing for two rezoning bylaws and an Official Community Plan amendment. One rezoning bylaw would enable a 2-building, 59,858 sq. ft industrial-office development at the corner of 56th Avenue and 200th Street.

Rendering of proposed project at 19959, 19971, & 19985 56 Avenue; 5643 & 5647 200 Street.

This proposed project is in an area where the current and future Official Community Plan, plus the Metro Vancouver Regional District’s Regional Growth Strategy designate for industrial uses.

Langley City is unique in that we allowed live/work units within our industrial areas. For example, someone could live above their workshop. Several residents who lived in the live/work building at 5678 199 Street expressed concern about added traffic to 199 Street, the lane design, the types of uses permitted within the proposed project, and crime prevention.

Staff explained they are completing a traffic study for 199 Street, and if required, the City would install a traffic light at 199 Street at 56 Avenue. Staff also noted that this project would not result in lane access to 5678 199 Street and further noted the project underwent a Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design audit. The proponent of the project accepted all the recommendations of the audit.

As for permitted uses, City staff explained that the land-uses are almost identical to the uses allowed for 5678 199 Street, which is light industrial. These land-uses mean there should be no loud noises 24/7 or noxious fumes.

Langley City’s Advisory Design Panel, which is composed of residents of Langely City, an accessibility representative, architects and landscape architects, made the following recommendations about the project, which the proponent accepted:

• Create more pedestrian connections between buildings and sidewalks
• Create a plaza area to the west side of the project
• Add a public art piece at corner plaza
• Add more landscaping in the parking areas, along building faces, and on the 3rd-floor patio

The second proposed project at the public hearing was for a 6-storey, 113-unit apartment building at Michaud Crescent and 200th Street. For the proposed rezoning, Council received one piece of written feedback from a resident who lives in a four-storey apartment in the area concerned about the 6-storey height of the proposed building. At the public hearing, one resident expressed concern that the proposed building is to be a rental project and was also concerned about on-street parking.

Rendering of proposed project at 5370 & 5380 200 Street; 5371 & 5381 200A Street; 20010 & 20020 Michaud Crescent; 20031 53B Avenue.

Another resident expressed concern about on-street parking and noted safety concerns for pedestrians that cross Michaud Crescent at 200th Street due to the high-speed right turn lane. Staff noted that the City would remove the high-speed right turn lane if the proposed apartment project proceeds.

The Advisory Design Panel made the following recommendations:

• Utilize alternate materials for the planters
• Improve interface and path between dog run and outdoor kitchen
• Update trellis to align with the form and character of building façade, and consider designing the trellis to provide cover for the outdoor kitchen
• Show building footprint in context with other buildings in the drawing package
• Add additional landscaping on the visitor parking deck and the site
• Utilize alternate materials to the proposed synthetic turf
• Create a unique façade variation at the corner of 200th and Michaud

The project’s proponent accepted most of the Design Panel’s recommendations except for the planters, which they changed to a mix of wooden and concrete planters. The proponent also reduced but did not eliminate the use of synthetic turf in the project.

Why does Langley City look the way it does? Why was that project approved? Is there a plan?

It may seem that city plans, public projects such as road construction, and private development happen uncoordinated and haphazardly. This is not the case. A series of interconnected policies at the provincial, regional, and local levels guide Langley City Council and staff's actions. I explain more in this video.

Willowbrook Shopping Centre – A Tale of Two Cities

One of the quirky things from an urban planning perspective in Langley is the Willowbrook Shopping Centre, which is about three-quarters in the Township of Langley and one-quarter in Langley City. Last weekend, I was looking at the renovation plan for the north side of the mall, which reminded me of this fact. The following map shows the municipal border within the mall.

Site plan of Willowbrook Shopping Centre, including pedestrian circulation and municipal border. Select image to enlarge.

Half of some shops are in the Township and half in the City, including The Bay. It would be interesting if there were “Welcome to Langley City” signs within the mall itself.

What I find interesting is the design of the parking lot. There is no protected pedestrian walking area in the parking lot in the Township while there is in the parking lot within Langley City. It shows one of the subtle but important differences in development guidelines between the Township and the City.

With Langley City’s new proposed Official Community Plan, creating safe pedestrian spaces in parking lots will be further enhanced. As per the proposed Official Community Plan, “clearly defined and well lit pedestrian connections shall be provided between site functions (buildings, parking, loading, pedestrian spaces) and to connection points outside the site (e.g. sidewalks and bus stops).”

For surface parking lots, they “should be broken up into smaller parking areas with dedicated pedestrian pathways buffered by significant landscaping for the safe movement of pedestrians to and from on-site destinations and public sidewalks. A minimum of one tree is required for every six parking spaces.”

While the new Official Community Plan places greater emphasis on walking, cycling, and transit than in the past, Langely City has a history of creating safer pedestrian spaces.

October 4 Council Notes: Virtual Meetings and New Bylaw Violation Ticket Process

One of the many things that the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us is that you don’t need to meet in person to have a productive council or committee meeting. The province gave local governments the ability to hold “electronic meetings,” for example, via Zoom, permanently. Local governments do need to update their Council Procedure Bylaw to unlock this feature.

I like meeting remotely in most cases. You don’t need to go to a council chamber for most things. Meeting in real life is required for workshops and planning sessions when you need to brainstorm and vision with others.

For members of the public, more people can attend public hearings and other council meetings. For example, people don’t need to find childcare to participate in a long council meeting. We asked members of the Advisory Design Panel if they wanted their committee meetings held in-person or virtually. 100% of the committee wanted to continue meeting virtually.

Given the strong support for virtual meetings, Council gave first, second, and third reading to an amended Council Procedure Bylaw, which will allow meetings to be held entirely virtually, hybrid in-person and virtually, or fully in person. The amended bylaw also contains other housekeeping items.

Council also gave first, second, and third reading to a series of bylaws that enable a new adjudication process for people who violate City bylaws. The new process will allow people to dispute a bylaw violation notice up to 14 days after being issued a violation notice. The process ends with an independent adjudicator. Today, people would have to go through a complex process that culminates in the court system. The City will maintain the “Municipal Ticket Information” process for serious bylaw violations and use the new adjudication process for matters like parking tickets.

Langley City Council gave final reading to the amended Watercourse Protection Bylaw to adjust the allowable pH levels for water discharged into a watercourse to aligned with the Metro Vancouver Regional District drinking water standard of 6.5 to 9.0.

New Design Criteria Manual: More Street Trees, Adapting to Climate Change, and Safer Streets

Last Monday, Council gave third reading to a proposed new Subdivision and Development Bylaw. As part of updating the bylaw, City Staff also updated the Design Criteria Manual for our community.

The bylaw set the base requirements for all civil works on public and private lands in Langley City, including lot grading, roads, waterworks, rainwater management, sewer, street lighting, traffic control, landscaping, and street trees.

With climate change occurring, communities must adapt.

Langley City’s proposed new Subdivision and Development Bylaw and Design Criteria Manual address the realities of climate change. The new design guide improves walking and cycling design standards. The new design guide also requires improved on-site rainwater management, focusing on letting rainwater recharge underground aquifers. Some of the new requirements include permeable paving material on private property.

To treat water runoff from roadways, the City will require bioswales, especially in the southern sections of Langley City.

An example of a bioswale. This one is in Brydon Park. Select image to enlarge.

The City will require all rainwater management systems to handle 100-year storm events. This requirement is one of the strictest in Metro Vancouver.

The City will also require street trees everywhere, and staff have updated the City’s standard road cross-sections to reflect this. Street trees will play a critical role in combating the heat island effect by increasing the tree canopy.

A typical road cross-section that includes street trees. Select image to enlarge.

I posted about the Subdivision and Development Bylaw in the summer when Council gave first and second reading to it. After first and second readings, staff sought public feedback on the proposed bylaw and manual. City staff received 16 suggested changes to the bylaw and design manual, and moved forward with 12 suggested changes.

Council also gave first, second, and third reading to amend the Highway and Traffic Regulation, Municipal Ticket Information System, and Fees and Charges bylaws to incorporate changes resulting from the new Subdivision and Development Bylaw.

Development Matters: Apartment Project and Industrial Project

Beyond the 13-unit townhouse project which I posted about yesterday, Langely City Council also gave first and second reading to a suite of bylaws that would enable:

A 2-building, 5,561 m2 (59,858 sq. ft) industrial-office development at the corner of 56th Avenue and 200th Street.

Rendering of proposed project at 19959, 19971, & 19985 56 Avenue; 5643 & 5647 200 Street.

A 6-storey, 113-unit apartment building at the corner of Michaud Crescent and 200th Street.

Rendering of proposed project at 5370 & 5380 200 Street; 5371 & 5381 200A Street; 20010 & 20020 Michaud Crescent; 20031 53B Avenue.

One of the highlights for the industrial-office development is that the project will retain the two large trees along 200th Street. Given the importance of retaining large trees whenever possible, which Langley City residents support, I was pleased to see this.

For the apartment project, the proponent is considering using synthetic turf (plastic grass) as part of the landscaping. This fake grass caused great concern for Langley City’s Advisory Design Panel, consisting of residents, architects, and landscape architects. Beyond introducing more plastic into our environment, plastic grass also contributes to the heat island effect. Council was also not impressed, based on the feedback I heard during first and second reading of the rezoning bylaw for the project.

The next step for these projects will be a public hearing. I will post more about these two projects after the public hearing.

Council gives third reading to bylaws to enable 13-unit townhouse project at 53rd and 198th

On Monday, Langley City Council gave third reading to a suite of bylaws that would enable the development of a 13-unit townhouse project on the northeast corner of 53rd Avenue and 198th Street. This proposal has solicited a significant amount of feedback from residents in the adjacent duplex area east of the project and the single-family housing area south of 53rd Avenue.

Rendering of the proposed project at 5324-5326 & 5334-5336 198 Street. Select image to enlarge.

As I posted previously, the concerns from current residents include density, shadowing on adjacent properties, green space, the urban heat island effect, on-street parking, tandem parking garages, and safety at the intersection of 198th Street and 53rd Avenue.

Council had a robust discussion about whether or not to grant third reading to the rezoning bylaw. It was a difficult choice to support giving third reading to the rezoning bylaw as I have a friend who lives in the duplex area, so I have detailed knowledge of that neighbourhood’s concerns. The project’s proponent addressed some of the concerns brought up by residents, but not all.

One of the primary concerns of residents adjacent to the property is shadowing. The project’s proponent shifted the townhouses to the west to reduce shadowing, but shadowing will still occur sometimes.

The other primary concern was increased density. A similar townhouse project is on the southwest corner of 201A Street and 53rd Avenue, adjacent to single-family houses. I asked staff if the density of that project was higher. City staff told me the density was higher. These townhouses have existed for at least 20 years. While I’ve heard from residents in the area about speeding and crosswalk enhancement, I’ve never heard a complaint about these townhouses.

In our region, the number one issue is affordable housing. We talk a lot about building “missing middle” townhouses at the regional level and in our City’s proposed new Official Community Plan. I recently purchased a townhouse off 198th Street and 55A Avenue. It has three bedrooms with tandem parking and cost me $725,000. I plan on moving in this fall once it has its occupancy permit. Units with double-wide garages were going for over $890,000 at the time as they take up more space. These prices are higher today. With these double-wide garage townhouses now pushing closing to $1 million today, I question if they are affordable.

One of the other major concerns was tandem parking. I asked City staff if there was enough on-street parking today to accommodate a worse-case of 13 vehicles parked on the street. I was told yes. I also asked if parking became a concern, would the City work with residents in the area to implement an on-street parking management plan? Again, staff told me yes.

To address residents’ concerns about intersection safety, the City will be extending the curb bulge along 53rd Avenue.

The project will include nine trees to increase green space. There were five trees on the site previously. The project also includes front yards on 198th Street that are setback around 12 meters from the sidewalk. The City will also be planting street trees about every 9 meters around the project. There are zero street trees today. These trees will also help reduce the heat island effect.

While it is a controversial project, I believe it will improve the quality of life for people in Langley City and help address the missing-middle housing crisis in our region.

Langley City Council considering $423,000 in property tax exemptions for non-profits and churches

Under provincial law, cities cannot levy property tax for the land under a church building. Cities can also exclude other lands from property tax that are owned by or used by churches, charitable, philanthropic or other not-for-profits.

As a matter of policy, Langley City Council also extends property tax exemptions to include all church-used properties, including parking lots, and to organziations on City-owned lands, such as the Langley Community Music School.

Property tax exemptions are not a free lunch. Each exemption granted results in an increase in taxes for people and organizations that do pay property tax. With no clear policies on why some non-profit deserves an exemption compared to others and realizing that these exemptions impact other property taxpayers, Council has not granted further exemptions since 2010. We receive applications for new property tax exemptions every year.

This “holding the line” changed last night. The majority of City Council felt that Langley Food Bank should receive a property tax exemption because of their good work. While I also believe they do good work, I voted against this initially for the previously mentioned reasons. Given that we cannot pick favourites from the non-profits that apply for permissive tax exemptions, I made the case that we should grant property tax exemptions to all the great non-profits that applied this year. The rest of Council agreed.

As such, all of Council supported extending the in-place property tax exemption for another year as listed:

Langley Seniors Resource Society - 20605 51B Ave: $34,412
Langley Stepping Stones - 20101 Michaud: $8,268
Langley Community Music School - 4899 207 St: $24,968
Langley Lawn Bowling (Outdoor) - 20471 54 Ave: $24,960
Langley Community Services Society - 5339 207 St: $9,568
Council of the Salvation Army - 5787 Langley Bypass: $2,470
Roman Catholic - 20676 Fraser Hwy: $63,795
Anglican Parish of St Andrew's - 20955 Old Yale Rd: $17,170
Vineyard Christian Fellowship - 5708 Glover Rd: $36,913
Vcr Global Mission Church - 5673 200 St: $16,900
Evangelical Free - 20719 48 Ave: $19,753
Church of the Nazarene - 19991 49 Ave: $15,443
Bridge Community Church - 5521 Brydon Cres: $12,171
New Apostolic Church - 19999 53 Ave: $4,279
Global School Society - 19785 55A Ave: $12,056
Langley Care Society - 5451 204 St: $29,777
Langley Hospice Society - 20660 48 Ave: $3,886
Inclusion Langley Society - 208-20239 Michaud Cr: $893
Inclusion Langley Society - 210-20239 Michaud Cr: $946
Inclusion Langley Society - 19977 45A Ave: $2,202
Inclusion Langley Society - 4570 209A St: $2,389
Inclusion Langley Society - 4830 196 St: $2,314
Inclusion Langley Society - 210-5650 201A St: $671
Inclusion Langley Society - 218-5650 201A St: $855
Inclusion Langley Society - 312-5650 201A St: $1,039

All of Council also supported new property tax exemptions for one year as listed:

Langley Memorial Hospital Auxiliary - 20560 Fraser Hwy: $42,620
Inclusion Langley Society - 20689 Fraser Hwy (Ground Floor): $8,914
Langley Food Bank - 5768 203 St: $12,357
Encompass Support Services Society 20616 - Eastleigh Crescent: $11,319

These exemptions have a total impact of around 1.5% on City property tax revenue. Council gave the updated property tax exemptions bylaw first, second, and third reading last night.

Langley City redevelopment supports school sites in Township

Langley City shares a school district and school board with the Township of Langley. One tool available for school districts to acquire new property for new schools is the School Site Acquisition Charge. The school board levies this Charge on every new residential development.

On the surface, the School Site Acquisition Charge makes a lot of sense. As municipalities approve new residential neighbourhoods, the school board can acquire new land for schools. This Charge makes sense in communities sprawling out, not in communities like Langley City, which are fully built out and have been for over 30 years.

School boards cannot use the School Site Acquisition Charge to expand existing schools.

Langley City has an ongoing issue with the School Site Acquisition Charge because the provincial government requires that it be applied school district-wide.

The School Site Acquisition Charge must be approved by municipal councils, but if a council rejects the Charge, it goes through a dispute resolution process that ultimately ends with the provincial government making a discussion about the Charge.

Langley City rejected the Charge in 2013 because it only supported Township students and schools, but still applied to new residential developments in the City. The provincial government ruled in favour of the school board.

The school board is updating the School Site Acquisition Charge as follows:

Low Density - Per Single-Family House: $1,000
Medium Low Density (21-50 units/ha) - Per Townhouse: $900
Medium Density (51-125 units/ha) - Per Apartment Unit: $800
Medium High Density (126-200 units/ha) - Per Apartment Unit: $700
High Density (>200 units/ha) - Per Apartment Unit: $600

The school board will collect this Charge in Langley City to support school sites in Willoughby and Brookswood/Fernridge.

Langley City Council approved this Charge last Monday because history shows that the province would likely favour the school board in a dispute resolution process.

I understand the value of a School Site Acquisition Charge, but it does encourage sprawl. A better approach would be a School Acquisition Charge, which would help pay for new schools or expanding existing schools due to residential development. This change would encourage the redevelopment of older schools and discourage sprawl.

As a note, the school board predicts that 5,164 additional students will enroll in Township schools over the next decade. The school board expects 490 additional students in the City over the next decade.

According to the school board, “due to the lower planned development numbers for the City of Langley, the students will need to be accommodated in existing buildings with possible additions to some schools to accommodate the growth.”