Wednesday, March 16, 2022

March 7 Council Notes: Short-Term Accommodation Tax Renewed. Crime Prevention Committee Created.

At its March 7th public meeting, Langley City Council gave final reading to adopt a new accommodation tax bylaw. Accommodation providers, including hotels and online short-term stay accommodation providers, charge this 2% tax whenever anyone books a place to stay in Langley City. The province collects this tax and transfers it to Langley City to provide local tourism marketing services. Discovery Langley City is the contracted tourism destination marketing organization for Langley City. City Council must renew this tax every five years.

Council also approved a new Terms of Reference for the Crime Prevention Task Group, making it a full committee. Previously, the task group had to be renewed annually by Council. As a committee, Council no longer needs to renew its mandate annually.

The newly expanded mandate of the committee is to:

  • Advance media messaging around crime prevention and community defense model programs
  • Facilitate the “Know Your Neighbour” campaign
  • Recommend crime prevention programs
  • Promote and educate residents about existing RCMP programs crime prevention programs
  • Promote and educate business owners about existing RCMP programs
  • Support creating new protective and supportive services that help everyone feel safe and supported

The committee includes:

  • Two non-voting members of City Council to act as Chair and Co-Chair
  • Six community-at-large members
  • One member from the Downtown Langley Business Association
  • One member from the Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce
  • One member from the youth community
  • One member representing the Indigenous community (new)
  • Two members representing Langley City social service providers (new)

Currently, Councillor Albrecht and I chair the committee. A representative from the RCMP also attends each meeting and supports the committee.

No comments: