Over the last four years, the majority of Langley City Council has approved significant investments in our community.
This includes funding:
- Nine new suppression firefighters and one new fire prevention officer, enabling us to go from one 24/7 firefighting crew to two.
- Five new police officers, which equates to a 10% increase in officers.
- Our own Emergency Program, with people ready to respond when disaster strikes.
Property tax has funded these investments.
“Most people would be surprised to learn that about two-thirds of the property tax collected in the City goes entirely towards police, fire, and public safety services,” said Nathan Pachal, who is running for re-election as mayor of Langley City.
The majority of Council in the last term also approved doubling the amount of property tax allocated to critical projects such as maintaining roads, water pipes, sewer mains, and parks, from $1 million to $2.4 million annually.
Other important investments include extending Al Anderson Pool’s operating season from four months per year to six.
“Unlike the provincial and federal governments, we cannot run deficits,” said Mike Solyom, who is running for re-election as a Councillor. “The unfortunate reality is that with rising police costs, insurance, and collective agreements, maintaining existing services costs more each year. We’re not willing to cut services in response to these rising costs.”
The Langley City First team believes in fiscal responsibility and transparency and supports Langley City's current and ongoing external efficiency review.
“I know our team is looking forward to seeing the results of the efficiency review and its recommendations,” said Pachal. “The Langley City First team is committed to implementing recommendations that will strengthen the services that our community relies on and will not cut any services. We’ve made significant gains in improving public safety and services that we will not roll back.”