Sasquatch After Mormons - TOL May Be Next On Hit List?

The Langley Times recently published this article about two Mormon missionaries in Burns Lake that found what is believed to be Sasquatch footprints outside their home. The prints were found very close to their wood shed.

Although not verified by the HBCC UFO research people, The Langley Record received credible reports that the sasquatch may be heading to the Township of Langley in time for the January 12, 2009 council meeting in order to greet the mayor and one councillor in particular.

Following his previous protocols, the sasquatch may confront the pair in the vacinity of a soon to be constructed wood shed. This wood shed was planned after recent fulltime fire fighter and Langley Events Centre shaninigans. A wood shed near town hall would sure be handy right about now, and just in time for the budget considerations. Wonder if NORAD will track this one?

How to Lose Votes and Be a Bad Influence on People

The Editorial Board received word last night that a certain Township councillor and quite possibly another at the top have burned some major bridges with their Langley Events Centre reconsideration stunt. To make matters worse, a blog published by this councillor recently threatened to "investigate" the use of some mailing lists.

Apparently the parties concerned have added some serious insult to injury, now impacting the community at large. As in the business world, companies who fail to provide excellent customer service will soon find themselves out of business. The principle behind it all is that when you burn one person they spread the word to 30-50 other people. Well, one person that has been put out in a serious way has a high degree of respect with some 4,500 families in Langley. Not only that, but when this person is not volunteering, he is a senior level finance executive for a major corporation. It is the type of person that should be appointed to a finance committee to bail the Township out of a mess of promises, but it appears that friends and campaign pals will fit the bill. But that is the top dog's problem.

But clearly this certain councillor (and possibly the top dog) now runs the risk of losing over 8,000 direct votes, not to mention all of the negative word-of-mouth that is circulating. The person that sent this information to us is highly reliable and we would put our life on the validity of the information received. This person made a very good point that public officials in Langley would be wise to consider. This person pointed out that volunteers are very valuable gems in our community and as they work for free, one should respect and not trash them. Perhaps this person phrased it better by saying, "Langley is a community of parent volunteers. I won't question the integrity of a volunteer."

So What's The Plan?

Today's Langley Advance published a letter by Dan Sheel. Dan is a switched on Township resident, parks & recreation volunteer and sports coach for many years. He is also a Surrey Fire Fighter. Dan Sheel asks the question that all Township residents should be asking. What is Mayor Green's plan to produce zero percent tax increases over the next 3 years and not bankrupt the TOL?

Dan rightly points out that the full facts of the Township finances have been known and public for some time. Despite being aware of these facts, Green promised a zero-zero-zero tax increase pedge over the next 3 years and said that he would repeal the 5% increase slated for 2009. Mayor Green was in the Town Hall directly after the election and has therefore been working fulltime for a month and a half. So what's the plan? It is only fair to TOL taxpayers that we know the full plan that Mayor Green intends to enter into budget talks with and we need to know up front so that he can't put the blame on any members of council. Over the past month we have seen considerable back-peddling by Mayor Green and he uses the art of maintaining a level of deniability to sneak away and attempt to lay blame on others.

You can demand that Mayor Green release his budget and tax plans to the public by emailing Mayor Green and council at mayorandcouncil@tol.bc.ca . Emailing both will ensure that the mayor is held accountable and your message will be seen by all. Request that the mayor reveal to all TOL residents his budget and tax plans for 2009-2011 now so that we have time to review them BEFORE the budget meetings. At the very least he should have an action plan ready for 2009.

You Can Talk the Talk or You Can Walk the Walk

For the past little bit we Township folks have heard much hot air from politicians that are purporting to have extensive business experience and credentials. This same minority then try to use this so-called experience and credentials to sell their "watchdog" approach to civic politics and the fiscal accountability line. Our Editorial Board is full of successful men and women. We all agree that most academics that we have come into contact with in the business world have lots of theories and book knowledge, but couldn't manage a small summer lemonade stand if their lives depended on it. This is why most young people these days begin their "education" the day they start their first real job. It is also why Bill Gates decided to drop out and do something with his mind and skills sooner rather than later. Not a good testament to educators eh? It is not something we recommend, but with the state of academics today, one has to wonder.

It is very easy to claim things during an election locally, as no one has the time or money to check. But after the election if the candidate is successful, you can look at their voting records, what they say and what they do as a signal of whether their expertise is a fantasy of their minds. One of the most fascinating bit of business advice this editor received many years ago was a simple statement. "How you do anything is how you do everything". What you do and how you do it impacts everything you do. I you constantly cry wolf in business or politics, people will soon tune you out. If you pander to those vocal elements in the community you will soon get shunned by the mainstream. If you propose fool-hearty motions you will soon be ignored by your colleagues and enjoy very little respect among them.

If you profess to be pillar of financial accountability and watchdog-ism, then how you do anything is how you do everything, right? Well, examine these expense reports from various TOL council members. Not that it would explain such a high amount, but how many on this list have full-time jobs and how many actually attend many meetings because they are retired and can? If you have a fulltime job, wouldn't you be expected to spend less taxpayer dollars? Wouldn't you at least be expected to spend less than that of a fulltime mayor?

You be the judge. But just remember this wise saying... How you do anything is how you do everything. Don't by fooled by politicians masquerading as watchdogs.

2006

Mel Kositsky $11,386
Kim Richter $9,001
Grant Ward $6,388
Bob Long $5,786
Steve Ferguson $5,119
Kurt Alberts $3,577
Howie Vickberg $818
Jordan Bateman $240
Charlie Fox $0

2007

Bob Long $8,007
Grant Ward $7,615
Kim Richter $6,641
Mel Kositsky $6,547
Steve Ferguson $4,936
Kurt Alberts $2,419
Jordan Bateman $1,137
Howie Vickberg $562
Charlie Fox $238

Taxes and Downloading

Today's The Province newspaper carries an an editorial on property tax increases mainly in Vancouver. Vancouver says the 6-13% tax hikes over the next year are due to an expected drop in revenues as the economy declines, annual wage increases for city workers, 96 new police officers and 22 civilian staff for the VPD as well.

The article also mentions the downloading of costs from the provincial and federal orders down to municipal governments. Township Councillor Mel Kositsky often reminds us that only 8% or 8 cents of every federal tax dollar makes its way to municipalities.

In the Township we are not getting 96 new police officers, but police, fire and public safety in general account for about 48% of our TOL budget. If you add in wage increases required by collective bargaining agreements, salaries account for somewhere in the neighbourhood of 87% of the TOL budget. This means that apart from wages and benefits, the Towsnhip is actually pretty lean and we are not the big spenders that a very small number of people would like us to believe.

The Towsnhip was slated to have a 5% increase in property taxes. The value of many homes in the TOL have been impacted downward by the economic meltdown. In fact, the Provincial government recently announced that they will use the 2007 BC Assessment values for collection of property taxes in 2008.

Mayor Green has stated several times that he would scrap the Township's approved plan to increase taxes by 5%. Latest discussions center around cuts in programs and increases in user fees. But aren't increases in user fees much the same as the tax increase? You might say that increases in user fees collect the cash from the people using various services, but aren't these Towsnhip services to be enjoyed by all? Many of us have no children in school yet we help pay for them. It's a slippery slope if you want to divide services and the dedicated responsibility to pay for them.

Now that Mayor Green has had over a month to examine the budget and receive consultation from senior staff it will be interesting to see where the TOL budget process goes in 2009. While none of us like paying more taxes, a 5% increase based on the amount and quality of what we receive is reasonable in our opinion. Perhaps Mayor Green will see the wisdom in this conservative proposal.

Green Makes A Move in the Right Direction

Over coffee this morning the Editorial Board of The Langley Record unanimously supported Mayor Rick Green's taking of the high road in this Langley Advance article. Our discussion turned to what Green could do in 2009 to bring more harmony to the Township and actually get some much needed work done. Here are some of the things we kicked around:

Public Input and Participation - Green promised during his campaign that there would be more public input. His first official move on this will be his new finance committee. But it is no surprise that instead of Green tapping into some significant business and finance experts, we hear he is leaning towards a committee comprised of his campaign supporters.The final committee list is not final yet, so we will not publish any names here. I guess you could consider these people to fit the bill of "public input", but Green runs the risk of having a bunch of YES men advising him. This is the mayor's decision and unlike Obama, Mayor Green seems to hold grudges with those that have oppose him and perhaps age causes him not to reach across the isle and built bridges to help his administration. If his New Year Resolutions include work in these areas, we agree that it would be a very good thing for him and the Township at large.

Town Hall Forums - Green announced last week that in the New Year he would launch separate monthly meetings where citizens can address their concerns to mayor and council. While this appears to be a good idea on the surface, it could turn very ugly and cause further division in the TOL. The current council process already allows citizens (and groups) to address mayor and council with concerns or announcements in the form of a DELEGATION. In our opinion the Delegation system works well, in that people need to state their case within a 5 minute time period. Over the years, mayor and council have been very generous with this time rule, but it still gets abused far too often. Imagine a separate public gripe session without solid time limits? If not managed properly, the public will grow tired of time-wasting and simply not attend these meetings. As it is, the Township public fail to attend most council and other public meetings.

Our suggestion to Mayor Green is to dedicate one regular council meeting per month to include a one hour gripe session that would include not only mayor and council, but would see senior staff or managers on hand that can speak to public concerns about Police, Fire, Waste Removal, Parks & Rec., Engineering & Traffic, Planning, and a host of Township services. Enforce a clear 5 minute rule and allow these people to present their more lengthy submissions in writing to council for further consideration. This would truly be a valuable meeting and experience for Township residents. If you can't state your case in 5 minutes, then you are just wasting public and council time.

Council Priorities Meetings - Mayor Green could really build some bridges in this Township with the advertising of Council Priorities Meetings and the opening of them to the public. It would be made clear that the public cannot comment at these meetings (just as they can't with current TOL committee meetings). This would help prevent the public from thinking that various issues just come out of thin air, leaving the public felt left out of the process. It would provide greater insight into the council process and help all of us to understand the issues of most importance to the TOL.

Consensus Building - 2009 Would be a great time for Mayor Green to put aside the issues of the recent past and begin to conduct in-camera and council meetings with an atmosphere of building consensus. There is one councillor that opposes these type of meetings because it doesn't leave much room for public grandstanding and pandering. The remainder of council are reasonable people and would embrace such a move by Mayor Green.

Abundance and Not Scarcity - Many Township residents are successful and some could be considered affluent. People that have achieved success in life know the value of prudent governance, but reject the notion of a scarcity mentality. While the world economic situation is a sobering reminder that we need to manage our finances, it is not fair to residents to paint a picture of doom and crisis because you promoted a way to finance the Township budget, while keeping property taxes at current levels. Township residents are not unreasonable people, but we do expect community amenities like parks and trails, recreation facilities and programs, etc. If you promote density development and increase the numbers of people that dwell on an acre of land (a huge shift in living arranagements for many people), then you must provide the community with quality amenities that allow people to get away from their small patch of land and enjoy some wide open space and first-rate facilities that accommodate their work, life and leisure schedules and activities.

Bridging Urban and Rural Residents - Over the course of this past civic election a huge spike seems to have been driven between the urban and rural residents of the Township. This is not healthy and both types of land use are extremely important to the health and vitality of this Township. While sewer, water and other public services should be provided to the rural residents whenever possible and practical, we must also respect the fact that many rural residents do not desire these services because of the connection and other fees that must be paid by them. Previously council has been flooded with complaints of this type and residents wanting exclusion from various area upgrades. Many of us older folks don't have kids in school, but we help finance the education system anyway. It is not fair that South and Central Langley folks complain to the urban residents about supporting community assets and amenities. Mayor Green could help bridge this divide and work to show both rural and urban residents the value of community assets.

There are tons of other recommendations, but the Board will leave those for a later time. Ponder these thoughts and feel free to voice your opinions.

Investigation Must Be Fair and Equal

Since this story broke this morning, The Langley Record has been very busy checking and re-checking some facts related to this case. Our interest as an Editorial Board of Township taxpayers is to ensure that a fair investigation take place. Late today, as diligent citizens, we presented Langley RCMP Superintendent Janice Armstrong with some materials which we view as very pertient evidence that will aid the RCMP in conducting a full investigation of the facts.

What is an Elector Organization or a Campaign Organizer? Who must register and why? Well, if you care to read the whole legal framework, you can do so by downloading and reading this PDF. We believe the spirit of this law was to prevent a person or group of people from taking public or private monies and using those funds to run or endorse a candidate or candidates, without full disclosure to the public. This could involve an individual, a group or charity or a BC Society.

Earlier this year some members of our Editorial Board received e-mails from a Township candidate that clearly linked this person to a registered BC Society. It was apparent as the messages progressed over the next month that this person was very much controlling what was to be a non-profit society, as well as running for office at the same time. Resources that are believed to be owned or leased by this Society was used at least once during the campaign for this candidate. If this is correct, then under the Act, this candidate, the Board of Directors of the Society, and the Society itself had an obligation to register as Campaign Organizers and as an Elector Organization. We are leaving this in the capable hands of the Langley RCMP to find out if this was done.

Also during our local Langley elections this website appeared and is clearly still linked to a PAYPAL account. When one visits this website even today, it is clear that this individual or group have endorsed candidates and collected donated funds to do so. Are they registered under the legislation as well? Again, we have provided information to the RCMP for them to make enquiries. A WHOIS search of this website's domain registration indicates the person or persons that registered the domain selected a private registry and therefore only the agent used for registration is listed and not the individual.

As well, BCTF signs also appeared in Langley during the civic election and may add another dimension to this RCMP file. What is clear is that ALL potential violations should be investigated for the sake of Township taxpayers and to establish a level playing field. We are confident that the Langley RCMP are competent to investigate these cases and draw rational conclusions for us.

In our humble opinion we find it difficult to believe our two MLA's who have always been people who display nothing short of honesty and integrity could be challenged with this act if indeed they did not pay for the advertising in question. What's more shocking is that the complaintant alleges that a Township councillor has somehow done something wrong by calling voters. In fact, many municiple candidates in Langley had phone banks operating and we fail to see how these lists and phone banks are a violation of any laws.

The Editorial Board of The Langley Record looks forward to the findings of the RCMP and we wish any innocent parties will be vindicated in the process.

Mayor Rick Green Not So Green?

The Aldergrove Star published a shocking article yesterday that should make Langley residents stand up and take notice. Apparently Aldergrove residents are not happy that a new sewer pumping station may be built in Phillip Jackman Park! This park was dedicate to Mr. Jackman just one month ago. Mr. Jackman was a dedicated pioneer who worked as a Royal Engineer and helped survey many areas of British Columbia. A huge crowd of residents attended this important dedication.

While the existing sewer trunk line to JAMES is undersized and threatens the environment, you would think that a public park that was recently dedicated to one of our pioneer families that remain in Aldergrove, would be off limits. Mayor Rick Green seems to favour avoiding these parklands. However, the shocker is this quote from the article...

“The environment can always regenerate itself.”

-- Mayor Rick Green

Update - Mayor Green Did Not Disclose In-Camera Info

Councillor Jordan Bateman announced today that his remarks to The Langley Advance were interrupted incorrectly. He says that the point he was trying to make was that this issue of the Events Centre and the P3 negotiations should have been discussed in a format that allowed all councillors to discuss and comment. Instead Mayor Green chose to use the Mayor's Report for this release of information, not allowing for open council discussion.

Our Editorial Board is relieved to hear that confidential information has not been released and further, that the taxpayers of the Township did not suffer loss from any release of in-camera negotiations.

It is a real shame that another blog has chosen to basically not accept Bateman's post and public appology for any confusion that may have come from this newspaper article. But of course it is par for the course with them, Isn't it?

It Gets Worse

Full time fire and Langley Events Centre was business brought on the table by new mayor and council as we previously reported. The Editorial Board of The Langley Record was hopeful that with this old business behind them, the Township through the new mayor would be able to move on. Our hope was that Mayor Green would now chilling out and grow into his role diplomatically.

As disturbing as the last meeting was with Mayor Green hijacking the Mayor's Report for political purposes as we reported, apparently it gets worse. It is alleged now that Mayor Green seriously compromised the Township by dragging the Langley Events Centre P3 information into the public meeting. It was an in-camera issue and therefore that requires a council vote to bring forth to the public. These negotiations may now be seriously damaged.

What is more disturbing is that if these serious allegations are true, this represents a somewhat systemic problem with Green. During the campaign Green took a position against the Township and in favour of a land owner that was fighting the greenest urban village that the Township has seen. Green attacked with developer and his expensive project that will bring jobs and affordable apartments to Township residents. As mayor, the Township is now vulnerable because of Green's campaign statements. This land owner could bring Green and his statements into court in support of his legal case. While this one was not an in-camera issue, it is representative of Green's loose canon style of politics.

Towards the end of his campaign, Rick Green attached himself to the Mufford rail overpass issue. Again he took up a postion against Township staff recommendations and said that he would give the federal and provincial monies back to those other orders of government. At the last council meeting he back-peddled by saying in effect that it was never really about giving money back more than it was about finding an acceptable solution. But Green also promised that he was going to get heavy rail OUT of Langley.

There are several other examples of Mayor Green's flip-flops and loose canon politics that will go unmentioned for now. All very disturbing for Township taxpayers. This not to mention the zero-based budget smokescreen that surrounds Green today. He promised a Land Trust to solve all our financial worries. He promised a zero-based budget funded by this Land Trust. He arrogantly said he would overthrow the planned modest 5% property tax increase that would fund increases in salaries (won through collective bargaining). Now he paints a picture of financial crisis and wants Township residents to shoulder massive cuts to services and possible user-fee increases that will be revealed in the New Year. He blames all this on the previous administration.

In just one month, Mayor Rick Green has managed to divide our community and turn a professional council into a circus. Our Editorial Board discussed the matter this morning over coffee and several members made an interesting statement. They said that despite Councillor Kim Richter's "oppose everything" style and occassional out of order, long-winded preambles to her motions, Councillor Kim Richter has done so with a degree of order. In other words Richter has objected for the most part with a degree of dignity for the process. A professional trait that Mayor Green appears to be sorely lacking in his handling of Township affairs. Somewhere along the line there must be a respect for council and more so, a view of our community as something almost sacred.

After Sleeping On It

Well, many folks on our Editorial Board are very disappointed with the way the past two Township council meetings have been chaired and how years of civil Mayor's Reports have now turned ugly. Add to this the blame game over the Langley Events Centre and the mayor's continued promotion of a false impression of a Township that is rotten to the core, it really drags on the souls of those that truly love and care about Langley as a community. It used to be a source of community pride to live in Langley Township, but lately it is depressing to live here. Nasty politics, negative campaigns, the twisting of issues and more have made it so.

Councillor Jordan Bateman presented a balanced report on last night's meeting on his blog today and our Board agrees that one must give him credit. He truly wrote what we would have wrote on this topic and it was done in a very civil manner. One of our blog members sent Councillor Bateman some questions as she wanted a rational reply regarding the events centre and fulltime fire fighters. He was good enough to write her back with a very detailed outline of the issues and facts. Our Editorial Board wanted to explain to the public the negotiation process that culminates to the formulation of a P3 and the fact that many projects, even larger ones than this (for example the Evergreen Line) are called a P3 with an agreement in principle and the details worked out as partnerships are solidified and true costs and final project build-out is know. We have queried a major law firm that are specialists regarding P3's and have requested a Guest Post from one of their lawyers on this matter.

After sleeping on this very disturbing meeting and the bullying that was witnessed, our Editorial Board has concluded that apart from fighting a political battles of his own making, Mayor Green simply lacks the experience and diplomacy required for this job of mayor of the Township of Langley. Our community is being ripped apart and we can only hope that Mayor Green will now focus his full attention on delivering his promised Land Trust that would require NO tax increases, while preserving the programs and integrity of this Township. It is our sincere hope that Mayor Green will also apply the balance of his time to learning his new job and how to execute his duties in a professional and diplomatic manner that will bring our community of communities together, not apart.

NEWS BULLETIN: Richter Motion Defeated - Mayor Green Turns Bully

One of our stringers just called the Editorial Board with the results of tonight's Township of Langley Council Meeting. It was an unusual night to say the least. Our stringer reports that the mayor threatening the democratic process, along with Councillor Richter once again getting no one to second an irrational motion.

Mayor Green kicked off a one-sided debate by inappropriately using the Mayor's Report portion of this council meeting to spout off about his election platform and how he will get his way. During the mayor's report he is really meant to list the various event dates and a listing of functions he attended. No one can recall a mayor using this time to promote himself and his agenda, but Mayor Green did just that!

After emphasizing his 12-14 hour work days, he got into a very disjointed rant about people sending mass e-mails and accused the public of spreading false rumours. He did much the same a week prior with the whole firefighter issue. Just as he did with fire fighters, he was able to back peddle by sounding like a promoter of the Langley Events Centre. He claims that no P3 (public-private partnership) is in place and it is simply a construction contract. The man ran on a platform of open government and then gets upset with people and tries to bully them around. He stated at least twice that if the public had any problems with issues they should call or e-mail him. But does he understand that we live in a democracy where people have the right to free speech and they also have the right to engage in discussions with all of council as many councillors are approachable and not bullies? Does he fathom that his actions and people issues are leading to the public avoiding him? People are not attracted to bullies Rick!

Our Editorial Board heard that this bullying by Mayor Green very evident as he served as the Chair of the last two council meetings. During the last meeting he cut Councillor Kositsky off as the man was making a calm point of order and when his verbal bullying wasn't working, he turned Kositsky's microphone off! This week he kept trying to rush and interrupt Councillor Charlie Fox from speaking. Later, Green allowed Councillor Richter to give a long preamble (more like a dissertation) to her motion. Never putting her in line until several councillors objected to the long-winded rant.

Many sports enthusiasts from the Township were present for this meeting and were very angry at the political stunts of Green and Richter. Our stringer overheard one man refuse Councillor Richter's request for a meeting with him to discuss the "complexities" of this matter. He said that he had seen and heard enough of her tonight. We also documented that for several days now, mayor and council have been bombarded with e-mails from many, many sports-minded residents that object to the Langley Events Centre being used as a political pawn. We have heard that at least one resident experienced a bully e-mail exchange with the mayor when she protested tonight's agenda. I'm sure Mayor Green and Cllr. Richter are unaware of the many supports of this particular resident, nor the votes the two have just lost with tonight's gong show.

Richter's motion did not get seconded and we are pleased to report that Councillor Bev Dornan (who voted against full-time fire fighters last week) obviously did not touch this hot potato this week.

The council chambers had an unusual number of Rick Green supporters present. It was a reminiscent of the inaugural Green love-fest, only attended this time by a faithful handful. Another bully attempt by the good mayor? It appears that anyone who dares to disagree with Mayor Green will have to deal with police-state tactics. Is this any way to run an "open and accountable government" Mayor Green?

Councillor Richter Moving Against Sports in Township

She did it when Township considered upgrades to McLeod Park and now Councillor Kim Richter is once again slapping sports tourism and families involved in sports here in the face. Here's the poop from the Editorial Board:

The Township of Langley engaged several partners including the Federal and Provincial governments and the school district to help fund the new Langley Events Centre. The build-out required finishing and furnishings that then places this facility within a standard that larger organizations look for when renting a facility of this type. Without these furnishings and amenities, groups at this level will discount the renting of an events centre. The Township staff, former mayor and council were all 99% certain that the federal government would honour a commitment. Contrary to what the pundits on another blog say, Mark Warawa doesn't come over to the mayor's office with a pen to sign an IOU. This is grant money and there are rules to follow and hoops to jump through.

Former mayor and council in their wisdom and experience created a contingency fund that could be used to complete the events centre, should something like federal funding fall through. The bottom line is that while there was never a firm federal commitment, there were many positive indicators and encouragement along the way. Approval of the appropriation of these contingency funds happened in the council's in-camera meeting last week, with Councillor Kim Richter absent. Here is the report of this in-camera meeting in next week's council agenda document.
Councillor Richter returned from her holidays and was apparently content to bring this simple appropriation back on the table to waste more of mayor, council and staff time, as is typical. Here is the motion she will present next Monday.
Her blog is spinning this as a "cost overrun". I'm sure by the truth reported here and in the news you can clearly see that this is NOT a cost overrun, but the result of a partner backing out of the commitment and grant money. Along with Rick Green, Richter is trying to promote an atmosphere of "financial crisis" in the Township and this $5M appropriation would get Green off the hook for the Land Trust promises that were to pay the bills. For Richter, it represents a cynical opportunity to distract voters from her flip-flop on hiring full time firefighters in Walnut Grove.

Does this waste of council and staff time make you angry? Can you see what Councillor Richter is doing here to play politics with your recreation and community events centre? Do your kids play sports or does your team intend to use these facilities? If so, e-mail Mayor and Council here to voice your opposition to Councillor Richter's Notice of Motion. You should also plan to be in council chambers on Monday evening at 7:00pm with your teams, kids and organizations to visually show your anger and opposition to Councillor Richter's politics as usual that is always disguised as fiscal accountability.

Be Careful When You Grandstand

The good people of the Township love their parks and trails. If one visits the Township website the list of parks and facilities are VERY impressive. We've heard that over the years some Township staff dedicated their lives to help gather these lands and see the amenities built out for the community. Planner Terry Lister developed the Arbour Ribbon strategy to create a buffer between the rural and the urban lands. Mayor Kurt Alberts put legs to the Arbour Ribbon and David Leavers, his staff and many volunteers at Parks & Rec really go the extra mile for Township taxpayers in building and operating QUALITY park, trails, and recreation facilities.

While most of council understand the Arbour Ribbon concept and the exceptional Sports Tourism model that the Township has worked, one member of council fails to respect the good people of the Township of Langley. This council member fails to see the huge numbers of sports enthusiasts that frequent our hotels and restaurants on weekends in Walnut Grove, Murrayville, and beyond.

This particular councillor lives in South Langley and we believe that this person doesn't get around the whole community much to see what is going on. Public comments made by this councillor concerning reducing the speed limit on 200th Street, in addition to blog posts speaking of "the grandstand" ( a reference to McLeod Athletic Park) and "the white elephant" (the new Langley Events Centre) abound. These statements show ignorance and is evidence of a failure to practice "management by walking around". After all, you can't see many of these things from your acreage in rural. Now there is certainly nothing wrong with living in rural Langley nor having acreage that you enjoy. But there is something wrong when an elected official fails to see the rest of our community of communities, dramatically failing to comprehend what benefits the Township residents and visitors derive in their lives from from these various public facilities.

Did you know that McLeod Athletic Park has facilities for:

• ball hockey
• baseball diamond
• resident caretaker
• change rooms
• drinking water
• horseshoe pitch
• jogging track
• lighted fields
• picnic facilities and shelter
• playground
• restrooms
• playing fields
• tennis courts
• treed nature walk

How many Township residents do you suppose use these facilities? How many sports enthusiasts from outside our community rely on these services and spend their money in Langley before and after their events? I don't know about you, but every time I pass McLeod the parking lot is full of cars and people are out and about.

What will the new Langley Events Centre offer the citizens and visitors of Langley Township? Well, to name a few:

• Willoughby Recreation Centre (with fitness and multipurpose rooms)
  
• Triple Gymnasium (with 2,000s seats)
• Arena Bowl (seating from 3,000-5,000)
• Indoor walking concourse
• Exhibition & Banquet Centre (seating up to 500 people)
• New home of the Langley Gymnastics Foundation
• Leased commercial retail & office space
• Community Park (playing fields, water park & picnic areas)

Why do you suppose all these groups have partnered on this project?

Our parks, trails, community centres and public amenities exist because they are an integral part of the Township of Langley. Many people live and visit the Township for these amenities. When you promote your personal political agenda by calling these community assets a "grandstand" or "white elephant", you show great contempt and disrespect for the good citizens of this Township. You slap the staff and partners of these venues in the face through your ridicule and mockery. Do you enjoy the Township's parks, trails and rec centres? If so, take our new poll!

Turmoil in the Langley Toy Box

This morning our Editorial Board alerted me to posts on an area political blog that will go unmentioned. The posts and comments from their editor and visitors accuse this blog of being affiliated in some way with a member of Township Council. They also suggest we are posting inappropriate comments and trying to post opinions and promote ourselves on their blog. We can tell you that all of these accusations are FALSE and baseless. We have no interest in this other blog and do not wish to be affiliated with it in any way. We have posted what we feel to be worthy links on our page and it seems that this other blog was left out for obvious reasons, mainly their lack of professionalism. Now they have sour grapes.

The Langley Record is receiving FACTS from various independent sources, and reporting these facts on this blog. Everything is vetted by our Editorial Board and yes, our solicitor. We live in a democracy and we have the right to publish the facts. We can do so even when these facts clash with the spin and slanted opinion of others. We have no interest in personal attacks on mayor and council, but we do plan to keep a running Report Card. We will take to task voting record and any obvious promotion of personal agenda that impact negatively on Township taxpayers. Enough said. Time to focus on the issues.

Council on Fire

Last week Township of Langley Council held a Council Priorities Meeting and reviewed the workings of a Modified Zero-Based Budget and what that might look like. Mayor Green asked all department heads to think outside of the box and present ideas on how their budgets can be cut. Mayor Green had made several public statements that indicate the Township is in a financial crisis and we have to take an ax to everything.

While the world is seeing the impact of a prolonged financial crisis brought about by the US markets, the Township is operating in the black. A scheduled tax increase of 5% was to keep things moving in the right direction. But Green ran on a zero-based budget and no property tax increase platform and now he feels the need to create a crisis to set himself up as the superhero that will bail the Township out. Fire Chief Doug Wade did as instructed and produced a plan to lengthen the full-time fire fighter expansions in Walnut Grove and elsewhere to a 6 year window. Green, Richter and newcomer Bev Dornan bought into it. We will have a new Golden Ears Bridge soon, a new highway there and the potential for greater truck and hazardous materials traffic, not to mention on-call staffing challenges in Fort Langley. We can't afford to fiddle while Rome burns (literally), or wait for someone to get killed out there before we act.

Green also ran on a platform of open and accountable government. Councillor Kim Richter did much the same as she borrowed a few lines of Green during the campaign. But if they really believed in open and accountable government, then why didn't Green and Richter advertise this council priorities meeting and make it public?

Several councillors had wanted this issue in front of the public and on the table. The Langley Record Editor heard several versions of who brought this forward in public, but the last word was that in fact Mayor Green did place it on the revised agenda for last night.

Council chambers filled with firefighters, family members, and fire fighter supporters as the meeting began. Soon after a public hearing on land developments was closed and the regular council agenda began, Councillor Jordan Bateman led the good fight to scrap the new fire study proposal and continue with already-approved plans to staff Walnut Grove as of January 1, 2009. Councillors Fox, Ward, Ferguson and Kositsky all stuck together to make this happen. Green didn't raise his hand, so he silently supported the motion. Councillors Dornan and Long were opposed. I believe that Long's vote was more about studying the chief's ideas more than nixing full time fire fighters. Later Green gave a little song and dance about his support for full time fire. I wish I had my hip boots with me, as the bullshit was piling high as the good mayor spoke.

There is no crisis in the Township. The Township has contractual obligations that they honour pay increases and such. Mayor Green promoted a land trust to solve all our budget challenges. Now he wants to create an atmosphere of crisis to get the heat off him and in effect blame former Mayor Alberts and council for the mess Green created himself.

Last night's fire fight was just the beginning my friends. Mayor Green will be doing much more back-peddling in future meetings for sure. His promises seem to be getting very hollow and the blame game has begun. Don't let Mayor Green off the hook for all the hot air expelled during the campaign.

Welcome to The Langley Record

Welcome to The Langley Record, a new blog that will explore the politics and promises in the Township of Langley. The Inaugural Council Meeting took place last night and soon we will post a listing of the issues and promises for you.

As time goes on, The Langley Record will post "Report Cards" to this blog to help you track who is doing what in the new open government of the TOL, and how well your tax dollars are being managed under the newly-elected Mayor Green who has promised fiscal responsibility during his term.

Real estate investors may also want to watch this space, as Mayor Green has promised several times to release a full list of all Township land holdings. This is great news for investors. If you take this soon-to-be-released list and colour the TOL-owned parcels you should be able to discover a pattern that will help you to buy, hold and assemble lands for possible re-sale to the Township in the future.

More to come! Stay tuned!