Roberts Bank Corridor Project - 196th Street Update

Back in January, the City of Langley held an open house about a new street, 196th, that was being built as part of the Roberts Bank Corridor Overpass Program. The original plan got many of the residents along the right-of-way upset because their yards which used to back into a  wooded area with a trail is being replaced with a noisy road.

Listening to neighbourhood concerns, the project planners changed the cross-section of 196th Street from

196th Street Old Cross-section

to

196th Street - New Cross-section

The east sidewalk was removed to allow for the retention of trees that would have been removed. Also, many of the residents where concern about noise from the pedestrian/trail connection and some even wanted it removed. I'm very happy that the connection is still there and that a berm will be installed to visually and aurally buffer the residents from 196th Street.

196th Street/53rd Avenue Pedestrian Amenities

I still have a call in to whether this connection will accommodate cyclists and will report back as soon as I find out. You can also download a full map called "The 10 Point Plan" which points out all the design features meant to reduce the impact on the community.

Time for a Kitty License in Langley?

One of the items that we will be talking about at the next City of Langley Park and Environment Advisory Committee is if the City should have a cat licensing requirement similar to the current dog licensing requirement. Langley is home to a diverse species of birds and small mammals, and according to an article in the May 28, 2011 edition of the Vancouver Sun:

Krystal Brennan, education coordinator at the Wildlife Rescue Association of B.C., said keeping cats indoors is good for the cat's safety and also prevents cats from attacking and often killing birds and small mammals.

"People don't really see that their cat can cause this much damage to wildlife," Brennan said. "Cats are natural predators that weren't native to this environment."
She said about 10 per cent of animals treated each year at their rescue facility have been attacked

According to the same article in BC over 90% of lost dogs are reunited with their owners while only 10% of cats are. The obvious benefit of cat licensing is that it helps reunite pets with their owners, but it also has other benefits. Both Calgary and Toronto have cat licensing. If your cat is “fixed” the cost per year is in the $10 range, otherwise the cost is three times more. The licensing fee pays for enforcement of animal control bylaws, education for owners, and emergency shelter for pets. It also reduces the amount stray cats that attack wildlife.

With the City of Langley home to the environmental sensitive Nicomekl Floodplain, maybe it is time for cat licensing in Langley.

Guerrilla Art

If you've ever been to Surrey Central SkyTrain Station, you might have noticed a bench and light that are surrounded by a fence under the stairs to the SkyTrain platform.

A "loose group of community members, organizations and amateur-artists" called interbenchion has decided to highlight this absurdity by highlight the fact that this bench exists with some public art displays.

This is there first go at it.

It made me laugh because it actually is a model of a real public art installation at a transit loop in Portland.

There second installation was a UFO-themed bench.

I think that it's a testament to a changing community that there are people who care enough to do something like this because it's not really easy (though I'm sure TransLink sees this differently, unless there in on it.)

BASELondon and Smarter Cities

BASELondon is a conference and trade show about "opportunities in a low-carbon London." The latest conference was last Wednesday. You can view presentations from the event on their website and many are worth looking at. IBM was also at the show with their Smarter Cities campaign and released an interesting infograph about what people in the UK think about their cities. You can read the full survey at IBM's website.

Click image to enlarge

Beyond this survey and even this event, smart businesses are starting to looking for new opportunities in the growing green economy and smart cities are looking to attract that business. Our region is at a cross-roads, we can either embrace the high-growth, green economy like Surrey is starting to do or be left behind as in the fossil fuel era.