People Have Been Doing Their Part to Conserve Water in Metro Vancouver

As you know, the Metro Vancouver region was under Stage 2 water restrictions on May 1st and Stage 3 water restrictions on June 8th to help manage the demand for water. There were two primary reasons for that: the first was that the First Narrows Crossing, a collection of three water mains under the Barrard Inlet, was out of commission, reducing the maximum amount of water available on any given day; and because of a reduced snowpack and forecasted drought, which places a constraint on the water reservoirs.

The good news is that the First Narrows Crossing was fully restored to service, and on July 16, the region moved back to Stage 2 water restrictions. While the City of Surrey did not take part in Stage 3 water restrictions, every other part of the region did. People did their part to conserve water, as shown in the following graph from Metro Vancouver.

Total water usage between May 1st and July 7th this year. Select the graph to enlarge.

As you can see, water usage was significantly down, including during the hottest days in June.

Total water storage in the Metro Vancouver water system. Select the graph to enlarge.

Water reservoir levels are on the lower end of the typical range, which is also good news.

For as long as I’ve been around, the region has moved through water restriction stages together and consistently. The Metro Vancouver Regional District plans to engage its member jurisdictions in the fall to review and update the Drinking Water Conservation Plan with, I’m sure, the goal of ensuring a consistent approach to water management.

New Audit: 15% of Buildings in Metro Vancouver Parks Slated for Removal

The Metro Vancouver Regional District Parks System is one of the jewels of our region. There are 354 buildings within regional parks with a total assessed value of $267 million that are maintained by the regional district. Another 40 are managed by other organizations within regional parks. Some of the buildings are for public use, such as washrooms, picnic shelters, and concessions. Others support park operations, and others are special-purpose, such as caretaker homes, heritage buildings, or vacant buildings. The regional district recently completed an audit of all buildings they managed within their parks.

There is a cost to maintaining buildings, and the park system's goal is to protect nature and connect people with nature. With this in mind, the regional district considered which buildings should be maintained, kept for now, or removed through sustainable deconstruction practices. The regional district assessment found that 74% of its buildings should be maintained, 11% should be put on the keep-for-now list, and 15% should be removed.

Example of a derelict barn that is slated for removal.

Some buildings support wildlife, including bats, barn owls, swallows, swifts, river otters, and skunks. For any building slated for deconstruction that supports this wildlife, additional measures will be implemented to ensure the wildlife isn’t affected, including providing replacement habitat, such as owl nesting boxes.

For example, in Aldergrove Regional Park, the following buildings have been slated for removal in the audit:

• Barn
• Horse Feed Storage Shed
• Louck's Big Barn
• Main Barn Rental Outbuilding
• North Shed Rental Outbuilding
• Rental House Rental House
• Storage Shed Rental Outbuilding
• Storage Shed 1
• Rental Outbuilding
• Storage Shed 2
• Tackroom Shed

As for next steps, the audit will help guide the maintenance of buildings within the parks and also which buildings will be removed over time.

July 13 Council Notes: School Site Acquisition Charges, Regional Land Use

Langley City and Township are in the same school district. School Districts can apply a district-wide School Site Acquisition Charge to all new residential housing projects to help offset the cost of purchasing land for new schools to accommodate student growth. There cannot legally be a separate rate for Langley City and the Township of Langley. As required by provincial law, the School District No. 35 Board of Education must prepare an annual School Site Acquisition Charge report that outlines student population growth over the next decade, the school sites to which the funds will be allocated, and the charge rate. This must be approved or denied by both Langley City and Township Councils.

In the most recent report, the City is expected to see 785 additional students over the next decade, and the Township is expected to see 6,561 additional students.

The School Site Acquisition Charge will be used to help purchase the following sites:

• South West Latimer Sport Field/Playspace - 5 ac
• North East Gordon (Jericho) Sport field/Play space - 5 ac
• Williams Elementary - 10 ac
• Smith Elementary - 10 ac
• Willoughby Slope Middle - 15 ac
• Brookswood Fernridge Middle - 4.6

These sites are in the Willoughby and Brookswood areas of the Township. The School District believes that the additional student in Langley City can be accommodated on existing school sites in the City with expansions, such as the recently completed 200-student expansion at Nicomekl Elementary.

In the long term, the City believes that a new school site will be required in the northwest section of our community due to the SkyTrain. The City will work with the Board of Education to identify a potential future site.

For each new unit of housing, the School Site Acquisition Charge is as follows:

Apartments - $600-$800*
Townhouses - $900
Detached Houses - $1,000

Langley City Council approved the School District No. 35 Eligible School Sites Proposal.

Any change to regional land-use requires the Metro Vancouver Regional District Board to consult with all local governments in the region. The City of Surrey is looking to remove 2.7 acres of Employment land near the Pacific Highway Truck Crossing to accommodate 20 single-detached houses. The Board sent a letter to Langley City Council noting this. Council asked City staff to send a response back.

*The lower number of units per hectre, the higher the rate.

New Mural Coming to Douglas Park Washroom Building

Over the years, the City has installed murals on several park washroom buildings throughout our community, such as the Inturban-themed mural in Linwood Park and two murals in Rotary Centennial Park. On Monday night, Langley City Council approved $12,000 from the City’s Public Art Fund to install a mural on the new Douglas Park washroom building.

The City will now put out a call to artists. The mural should illustrate the diversity of park users, events, and activities that take place at Douglas Park, and it should wrap around the four sides of the building.

Still on the topic of murals, Langley City regulates private murals in our community that would be of a more commercial nature. A Bread Affair currently has a mural on its building on the Langley Bypass and is looking to have it repainted with a fresh design. As per the City’s bylaws, it must be reviewed by the Arts, Recreation, Culture and Heritage Committee and approved by Council. On Monday, Council approved the mural. As this is a private mural, it is not funded by the City.

Langley City Council Gives Approval in Principle to $661,601 in Property Tax Exemptions to Non-Profits and Houses of Worship for 2027

There are two ways that Langley City Council provides financial support to non-profit organizations in our community. One is through our community grant program, and the other is through permissive property tax exemptions.

The community grant program is funded through casino revenue, while the permissive property tax exemption program is funded through property taxes. On Monday, Langley City Council gave approval in principle to grant $661,601 in permissive tax exemptions for the 2027 tax year. Without these exemptions, the City would be able to lower property taxes overall by about 1.5%.

While Council has not contemplated removing a non-profit organization's permissive tax exemption, it has not approved any additional permissive tax exemptions since 2022. Personally, I consider this a legacy program and am not supportive of its expansion.

Houses of Worship receive a statutory property tax exemption from the provincial government for the land on which their physical buildings occupy. The City also grants a permissive tax exemption for the remaining portions of the land they own.

The following table lists the permissive tax exemptions for the 2027 tax year.

Organization	Amount
Roman Catholic Archbishop of Vancouver	75,196
Vineyard Christian Fellowship	68,617
Langley Seniors Resource Society	62,168
Langley Lawn Bowling	52,358
Langley Care Society	41,650
Town & Field Church	41,396
Langley Memorial Hospital Auxiliary	40,547
Vancouver Global Mission Church	40,170
Anglican Parish of St Andrew's	36,006
Church of the Nazarene Canada Pacific District	32,365
Langley Community Music School	29,658
Encompass Support Services Society	27,709
Inclusion Langley Society	23,965
Bridge Community Church	23,620
Langley Food Bank	23,097
Langley Community Services Society	13,101
Langley Stepping Stones	11,532
New Apostolic Church Canada	9,088
Langley Hospice Society	5,784
Council of the Salvation Army	3,574

Council will need to adopt the 2027 permissive tax exemptions at its next meeting.

Langley City Joins the Call to Action for Renewing Flood Protection in the Lower Mainland

With climate change, flooding events are becoming more common in the Lower Mainland. In Metro Vancouver, about half of the dikes that protect us from flooding “are in a poor state of repair, and most do not meet modern flood protection standards.” These dikes also do not meet seismic design standards, which is critical as our region is in an earthquake zone.

The 2021 Fraser Valley flooding resulted in $675 million in insurance claims and disrupted the movement of goods and people from the Lower Mainland to the rest of Canada. This is significant given that the Port of Vancouver is Canada's largest port. All this to say that our region is a trade corridor of national significance.

The provincial government has created a B.C. Flood Strategy, which is pending implementation.

Langley City Council received a presentation last night from the Lower Fraser Floodplains Coalition, which includes First Nation and local governments in the area. Their report noted that “a single major flood in the Lower Fraser could wipe out over $350 billion in economic value.”

With that in mind, they are calling on First Nation and local governments in the Lower Mainland to sign onto a joint statement which includes calling on the federal and provincial governments to:

Recognize the Lower Fraser’s resilience as a matter of national and provincial significance: urgently requiring attention, but manageable with practical measures, and essential for the long-term safety, and the cultural and economic well-being of all communities, the province and the country;

Recognize that collaboration, not competition for piecemeal funding, is the foundation for resilience in the Lower Fraser, and that enabling First Nations and local governments to work together to meet responsibilities to their communities that flow from title and rights and jurisdictions, is part of that foundation.

Address federal and provincial responsibilities to ensure the resilience of critical infrastructure essential for the region, for British Columbia and for Canada; and

Develop a sustained, long-term investment program for the Lower Fraser adequate to support collaborative work across federal, provincial and local governments, First Nations and the private sector to achieve regional floodplain resilience that works with nature, not against it.

Langley City Council approved the City's signing onto this joint statement last night. Other local governments that have signed onto the joint statement include the Metro Vancouver Regional District, Squamish-Lillooet Regional District, Port Coquitlam, and the Township of Langley.

Each New Resident Requires $80,039 in New Public Infrastructure in Metro Vancouver

When building a new home, there are costs for construction, including land, materials, and labour. There is also the cost of providing public infrastructure to the home and the people who live in it. The Metro Vancouver Regional District recently commissioned a study to determine the amount of provincial and local infrastructure required per household and per capita to support population growth in our region.

The per capita cost is $80,039. The per-household cost varies by density. For lower-density housing, such as detached homes, the new infrastructure cost is $272,568 per unit. For medium-density housing such as townhomes, the new infrastructure cost is $242,339 per unit. And for higher-density housing such as apartments, the new infrastructure cost is $152,535 per unit.

Local governments in our region are responsible for about 60% of the infrastructure required for new homes, with the remian 40% delivered by the provincial government.

In Langley City, we charge fees for each new housing unit to help cover some of these infrastructure costs. The total local government fees and contributions for a new apartment are around $50,000 per unit. For a detached home, it is around $80,000 per unit. The costs are nowhere near the cost of providing the infrastructure.

Table of infrastructure considered in the study. Select the table to enlarge.

A simple suggestion might be to increase the fees for building new homes. For example, to reach a break-even point, the City and region would have to charge an additional $40,000 in fees per new apartment unit, raising the fee from $50,000 to $90,000 per unit. Of course, this would affect housing affordability.

Local governments do rely on property taxes and user fees as well. We also have aging infrastructure in all municipalities. Generally, property taxes and user fees are used to fund the renewal of existing infrastructure and to support ongoing municipal operations, such as police officers, firefighters, and people who maintain our parks.

Another suggestion might be to increase property taxes and user fees to pay for new infrastructure. This would also have affordability implications.

While property taxes, user fees, and municipal fees charged for each new housing unit will need to increase, the federal government has a role to play. They really do need to step up and increase federal funding for the infrastructure required to support population growth.

There are some limitations to the data, including regional variations in costs. For more information, please read the Regional Planning Committee Regular July 2, 2026 agenda starting on page 168.

Langley City’s 2025 Annual Report Out

Local governments deliver services every day that people rely on, from running water and sewer services to parks and streets. When an emergency occurs, local police and fire services are on hand. I created an infographic many years ago that shows the various public services and the level of government that delivers them.

The City completed the Fraser Highway Oneway Renewal Project last year.

One of the things I’ve always found interesting is that voter turnout and overall levels of political engagement are lower for local government than for provincial or federal governments, considering the significant impact local government has on people’s day-to-day lives. Though with some exceptions, local government work tends to be “boring”. Approving the upgrade of a 450mm sewer pipe to 900mm, while critical, isn’t headline news.

Local governments do reflect the communities they serve. For example, some communities might focus more on recreation services while others focus on parks and trails. Some communities have libraries open 7 days a week; others do not. Some communities may focus on creating a walkable community, while others focus on industrial development.

In BC, all municipalities are required to produce an annual report. This report outlines what a municipality accomplished in the reporting year and its priorities for the upcoming year. In Langley City, our report reviews these by department. It can be an easy way to learn about your municipal government.

For example, last year the City completed a comprehensive inventory of all trees in our community and adopted a new tree protection bylaw; this year, the City is planning to replace its Operations Centre.

The annual report also included information on permissive tax exemptions granted, community grants awarded, and the annual financial statements.

If you get a chance, please flip through Langley City’s 2025 Annual Report, especially the “Department Overviews” section.

June 29 Council Notes: Proposed Increase to RCMP Officers. Pleasantdale Creek. Other Housekeeping Matters

Langley City Council addressed several matters at its June 29th meeting. I posted about some of the items over the last week, and wanted to follow up with the remaining items.

Because the federal budgeting cycle for the RCMP differs from the local government budget cycle, we need to signal to the federal government the maximum number of RCMP members (officers) we are considering hiring per year. The federal government pays 10% of RCMP member costs. In discussions with the Officer in Charge of the Langley RCMP Detachment, City staff recommended that Council consider hiring two new members in 2027. As such, Council approved a letter to the federal government known as an “approval in principle”. Council will have the option to approve or deny funding for these two new positions as part of the 2027 budget process, which will start this fall.

If Council moves forward with two new members, contracted policing costs would rise from $16.5 million this year to $16.8 million in 2027 for our City.

Council also adopted changes to the Election and Assent Voting Procedure and City of Langley Sign Bylaw in preparation for this fall’s local government election. You can read more about this in a previous post.

Council approved the City’s Manager of Communications and Public Engagement attending the Municipal Communications Conference in Toronto, Ontario, which runs from November 30th to December 2nd.

Finally, Council received a presentation from the Nicomekl Enhancement Society about proposed enhancements they would like to see to improve salmon habitat in Pleasantdale Creek. This comprehensive presentation was forwarded to Council’s Environmental Sustainability Committee for consideration.

Upgrading Storm Sewer Near Linwood Park

Storm sewers are what route runoff from buildings, streets, and parks into watercourses. Newer storm sewers will have passive systems that reduce suspended sediment and oils, though whatever goes into a storm drain eventually ends up in a river.

The current storm sewer around Linwood Park is undersized for today’s storm events and needs upgrading. During some storm events, the current system cannot handle the flows.

The following map shows the proposed upgrade.

Map of Storm Sewer Improvement Project around Linwood Park. Select the map to enlarge.

Last Monday, Council approved issuing a tender to Blackline Site Works Ltd. for $789,329.13 for this project, and ISL Engineering and Land Services Ltd. for $49,768.00 to provide construction management services for the project. Council also approved an $85,000.00 contingency, as we are an old community, and even with the best planning, surprises can arise when replacing underground infrastructure.

This project is scheduled to start this summer and finish up in the fall. This project was approved in the 2025 Langley City budget.

The costs do not include GST.

2025 Council Remuneration & Expenses and Other Annual Disclosures

Every year, all public sector organizations need to produce their Statement of Financial Information. This reporting includes year-end financial statements, the total compensation of elected (or appointed) representatives, the names, salaries, and expenses of employees who earn over $75,000 per year, and the names and amounts of supplies with an annual value over $25,000.

Langley City procured $83.3 million in goods and services in 2025. The City had $18.0 million in employee salaries and expenses in 2025. Total compensation for Langley City Council was $648,915 in 2025, as shown in the following table.

Elected Official	Remuneration	Expenses	Benefits	Total
Pachal, Nathan J.	$155,841	$5,737	$36	$161,614
Albrecht, Paul E.	$75,063	$7,423	$5,154	$87,640
James, Teri L.	$70,388	$53	$5,141	$75,582
Mack, Delaney	$75,323	$4,813	$4,577	$84,713
Solyom, Michael	$70,128	$517	$36	$70,681
Wallace, Rosemary H.M.	$72,725	$7,749	$5,154	$85,628
White, Leith	$72,725	$5,165	$5,154	$83,044

When looking at Council compensation, it is important to note that we rotate the Deputy Mayor role among Councillors on a two-month cycle. You will notice slight discrepancies in the remuneration of some Council members because of when their Deputy Mayor service falls. Some members of the Council may choose not to receive health or dental benefits because they are covered under a family plan with their spouse or another employer.

Expenses will also vary for Council members. Council members can attend the Lower Mainland Local Government Association AGM and Convention, the Union of BC Municipalities Convention, and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities Convention. Not all members of Council attend all conferences. Councillors Albrecht, Wallace, White, and I also went to Ottawa last fall on an advocacy mission to the federal government. You can learn more about this mission in a previous post.

The New Langley Innovation District Brand

As I posted about previously, Langley City adopted an economic development plan in late 2024. One of the pillars of the economic development plan is supporting food technology businesses, which aligns with existing businesses in our community and with programs at Kwantlen Polytechnic University’s Langley City campus. Expanding food technology is a priority for the federal government as well, with its focus on Canadian food sovereignty. This essentially means that, as a nation, we can produce, process, package, and deliver food without relying on other nations. A delegation of Langley City Council went to Ottawa last fall to meet with federal politicians and federal government staff about food technology and the role that Langley City can play. You can read more about this in a previous post that I wrote.

Langley City Council also recently adopted the Glover Road Innovation District Plan, which outlines what the City needs to do to support our economic development plan, with a focus on land use, including zoning, transportation, and business incubator facilities. I posted about this plan, which Council adopted last month.

To help promote food technology and the innovation district, the City has developed the Langley Innovation District brand with its own logo.

The brand’s mission is captured by the half-moon design.

The half-moon represents innovation in motion. It is not a finished circle, but a form in transition, signalling growth, experimentation, and continuous evolution. The shape subtly references the natural cycles that underpin food systems while also evoking a contemporary architectural dome or lid - ideas incubating, energy building, transformation underway. It reflects the fusion of agriculture and technology, science and craft, soil and software. The half-moon is both horizon and shelter: a mark of emergence and a symbol of a district designed to cultivate what comes next.

Last fall, the City, in partnership with KPU and the Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce, held its first food technology forum. With the Innovation District plan complete, the City will be hosting its second forum this fall to continue to centre Langley City as a food technology hub that will attract jobs to our community.