I'm an "Activist" and I like it

I’ve been thinking a lot about the word “Activist”, which the Langley Advance used to describe me last week, when I announced that I’m running for a seat on the Township of Langley Council in October 2018. I didn’t write that adjective about myself in my news release and for some reason when I first saw the article, it worried me a bit. Someone asked me if I had “fed” that word to the media - and I replied that I certainly did not, however I felt I could survive the label!

That prompted me to look up the definition of Activist, which is:

noun: activist; plural noun: activists

1. a person who campaigns to bring about political or social change.

Which does perfectly describe what Michelle Connerty (me) been up to, in relation to Municipal Politics, in the Township of Langley lately. I have not been able to sit still and be quiet or complacent about all the poor choices and decisions that I have witnessed by this Mayor and majority of Council, during the last four years.

Issues I’ve brought up on a regular basis in front of Mayor and Council, on social media and in the local papers, include:

Development without proper infrastructure (explained more below).

CACs (Community Amenity Contributions and DCCs (Development Cost Charges) - are these sufficient to cover the cost of new residents and the infrastructure required, are these funds earmarked for the area in which they are charged or does this revenue go into general revenue and “disappear” or become unaccountable for its spending?

Insufficient hospital beds and facilities at Langley Memorial Hospital - how can any politician agree that an eight to ten hour waiting time at an Emergency Room is humane? Although this is a Provincially mandated and funded issue, adding more residents to the Township of Langley is highly problematic without secured funding for adequate medical access. I believe that the Township of Langley needs to lobby the Provincial Government for better medical services immediately.

Phasing for development rather than letting it take its natural course at the will of the Developers. The Brookswood OCP of 1987 had phasing outlined clearly, and for good reason. Development can be highly disruptive to Communities and is much more expensive overall when done piece meal. Willoughby and particularly the 208th Street corridor is a perfect example of what happens when you don’t mandate phasing.

Lack of a tree by-law that is comprehensive, self-funded and flexible. We are surrounded by municipalities that have very good tree by-laws that are not overly onerous to Owners, are self-funded and protect significant trees. This Mayor and Council chose to defer this issue to the next set of elected officials without much explanation.

Schools - just like hospital beds, are an issue where we should not be playing “catch up”. Opening schools that are overfilled on Day One is simply poor planning. Having families that have three children in three difference elementary schools is wrong and disruptive to the whole family and Community.

Parking issues - just watch the Willoughby Residents’ Facebook Groups to see how poorly executed planned parking has been in this area. When you allow single family housing to be replaced with a house that is a home to two and sometimes three families, without adequate parking in the neighbourhood, it creates chaos.

Housing affordability - we have to look to other jurisdictions to "build outside the box" and create all levels of housing. I'm not sure how to do this, but it needs to be done and quickly. There are too many displaced people in our Community and land values do not seem to be going down anytime soon.

Finally, there is personal property crime. Langley RCMP do not prioritize property crime, they have neither the resources nor the mandate to deal with this issue. As more and more homeless residents move into our Township, without the proper support system in place, they are forced into a life of crime just to survive. This year we saw the local Brookswood Community Liaison Office removed from Brookswood with no announcement, no explanation and certainly no plan. Month over month if you watch the personal property crime map for the Township, the number of incidents keep rising and those are only the incidents that are reported.

It’s time for a change - a change in priories, a change in perspective, a change in guard. It is abundantly clear that this Mayor and the majority of Council do not listen to the people of Langley. If they did, Aldergrove would have a pool with walls and not an entertainment destination without adequate parking, planning or Staff. Brookswood would not have been split into two distinct parts - developed and undeveloped (no one living here and planning on staying here wanted that). Willoughby would have streets that were completed in phasing, enough school seats and parking and would not look like a war zone.

These are some of the reasons I’m running for Council – and I’m sure many more that I’m about to discover. I will listen to the Community, I will ask and work hard for what we want and need - well thought out Communities that create neighbourhoods not just housing developments stark of any character or thought, with ugly strip malls on every corner. If all this results in branding me an “Activist” then so be it, I’m happy to wear the label!

We know better, we deserve better - #buildabetterlangley

~ Michelle Connerty