In Langley City, all new housing and commercial property projects are redevelopment projects, which typically involve the demolition of older buildings. While there have always been a small number of projects that stall, the number of stalled projects has increased markedly over the last year, as the cost of construction and financing has risen, and the selling price of housing and commercial properties has declined.
As a result, we’ve seen an increase in buildings slated for demolition that are empty, properties that are poorly maintained (such as by not controlling weeds or mowing lawns), and some that are improperly secured. The results are an increase in unsightly properties, people breaking in and camping inside these properties, and fires. All of this is completely unacceptable as it creates safety risks for the whole community.
In the past, it was typically weeks between when a building was vacated and demolition occurred; now it is months or even longer.
The City has always had a team that includes development services, police, fire, and bylaws to address these types of properties, but we need to augment this approach.
The City is actively working on updating the requirements for maintaining clean and secure properties and buildings slated for demolition. For example, this will include prescriptive requirements around securing windows and doorways, site fencing, property maintenance, and monitoring. These requirements will be communicated to existing site owners who have projects going through the redevelopment process, and they will be a requirement for all new redevelopment projects. Council may also need to update policies. These changes are happening ASAP.
As I noted, the best action is to have a very small window between when a building is vacated and when it is demolished. Even so, enhancing requirements for maintaining secure and clean properties will benefit the entire community now and into the future.
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