National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Langley

Tomorrow is Orange Shirt Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The federal and provincial governments established this statutory holiday in response to one of the 94 Calls to Action from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

This day is “to honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.”

Reconciliation Langley is hosting what is now an annual event in our broader community at Derek Doubleday Arboretum from 5 pm until 8 pm on Tuesday, September 30th. The event includes an educational story walk, which you can go at your own pace, drummers, speakers, and a candlelight vigil. For more information, you can visit the Reconciliation Langley Facebook page or email reconciliationlangley21@gmail.com

If you are unable to attend an event in person, I encourage you to learn the history of residential schools. A very good virtual resource is the Witness Blanket by artist Carey Newman and hosted by the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

Have You Say: Langley City Aquatic Centre Study

Our community has experienced rapid growth over the last decade, and with the impending arrival of the SkyTrain, the number of folks moving to Langley City is expected to continue as a long-term trend. While the Al Anderson Memorial Pool is a first-rate facility, we recognize that we will need to expand or build a new facility.

Since I’ve been on Council, we've heard from the community a desire for an indoor facility.

As part of the broader Invest Langley City vision, the City is launching an Aquatic Centre Feasibility Study.

What would you like to see in a potential future facility? A cold plunge pool, sauna, steam room, or leisure pool? Have your say.

On “Let’s Chat, Langley City!”, you can learn more and take part in a survey.

The City is also hosting pop-up info booths as follows:

• September 27 from 10:30AM to 12:30PM at Al Anderson Memorial Pool
• October 6 from 2:00PM to 4:00PM at No Frills (5501 204 Street)
• October 6 from 5:00PM to 7:00PM at Timms Community Centre

The City expects to complete the feasibility study by the end of December.

Take the survey

Langley City at the Annual Union of BC Municipalities Convention: Advocacy and Awareness

Around this time every year, local elected folks from around BC gather for the annual Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention. The convention either takes place in Vancouver or Victoria. This year, it is in Victoria. There are several key components of the convention.

The first is that the UBCM membership, including myself and other elected folks, debates resolutions, and if these resolutions are approved, they are forwarded to the province to represent the views of all municipalities in BC. These resolutions also help inform the advocacy efforts of the UBCM to the provincial government. The resolution usually calls on the UBCM or the provincial government to take a specific action. Langley City has four resolutions for debate, which were previously endorsed by other elected folks from the Lower Mainland earlier this year.

Waiting for an appointment with a provincial minister.

Councillor Albrecht, Councillor Wallace, Myself, MLA Amna Shah, Councillor Mack, and Fraser Health CEO Dermot Kelly.

The second is that the provincial government provides 15-minute mini meetings for local governments to meet with provincial ministers and staff. These are good advocacy opportunities. Langley City Council met or is meeting with:

• MLA Christine Boyle, who is the Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs to ask to continue to support the redevelopment of the Langley Lions Housing project to support more housing options for lower-income seniors, expand the Heart and Hearth program to Langley to support people who are living rough, and provide more long-term housing option in Langley with support to help give people a way out of homelessness.
• MLA Josie Osborne, who is the Minister of Health to ask for complex-care mental healthcare beds for people in Langley, including for those who are living rough.
• MLA Amna Shah, who is the Parliamentary Secretary for Mental Health and Addiction to ask for the “Car” program or Mobile Integrated Crisis Response to launch in Langley. This program pairs a police officer with a nurse to provide on-site emotional and mental health assessments and crisis intervention when someone calls 911.
• Bobbi Plecas, who is the Deputy Minister of Infrastructure to ask for continued investment into health care infrastructure and schools in Langley to prepare for the arrival of the SkyTrain.

The third reason is to learn from others about what is happening in their community, including issues and possible solutions, either by attending panels and presentations or informally over lunch or dinner.

The conference runs all week. I’m attending Tuesday through Thursday, though we have representation from Langley City Council all week.

Latest Point-in-Time Homelessness Count Report Insights. Next Steps.

The Homelessness Services Association of B.C. released preliminary data for the 2025 Metro Vancouver point-in-time homeless count in July and recently released its finalized report.

One key note about the study is that it does not capture everyone experiencing homelessness. The data represents the minimum number of people experiencing homelessness. That being said, it is extremely valuable to show the trend in the number of people who are experiencing homelessness.

Unsurprisingly, the number of people experiencing homelessness continues to grow in Metro Vancouver. About 70% of people experiencing homelessness are in Vancouver and Surrey. Places that traditionally have had a limited number of people experiencing homelessness, such as Delta and White Rock, are also seeing increases, though at a much lower rate. In total, 5,232 people were identified as experiencing homelessness in the 2025 point-in-time count.

The following chart shows the number of people experiencing homelessness in Langley City and Township over the years. Data split by municipality is not available in the report.

In total, 243 people, 5% of the total count in Metro Vancouver, were experiencing homelessness at the time of the count in Langley City and Township. 138 people were unsheltered, meaning they weren’t temporarily sheltered in places like the Gateway of Hope.

Some other notes are that Indigenous people are overrepresented in the population of people experiencing homelessness as a result of intergenerational trauma, residential schools, and colonial practices.

Another alarming trend is that the length of time people are experiencing homelessness is increasing. Up until 2020, about half of the people were experiencing homelessness for more than a year. In 2023, this increased to 69%; by this year, it was 75%. This trend means that people who are experiencing homelessness do not have pathways out of homelessness.

About 2/3rds of people experiencing homelessness have mental health and substance challenges from the point-in-time data.

So, what does this mean, and where do we need to go?

The provincial government must continue to invest in long-term mental health care with housing. This is essential. They must also increase treatment options for people with substance use issues. With these options in place, people will have a path off the streets or emergency shelter services. Expanding and investing in these areas will help a large number of people who are currently experiencing homelessness.