Inside Langford

If you checked out the City of Langford’s Meeting Calendar for Jan. 2012, found under the City Hall tab along the top of the website then look down the left sidebar, you would think councilors and committee members were taking an extended break. But they are not. If you spend the time to click through each of the committees you will find there are actually three committees meeting this week.

Monday’s Planning & Zoning includes a proposal to delegate to staff Temporary Use Permit Authority for the removal and sale of rock from sites under development. This has been in the past a very controversial topic. This change to staff approving the temporary permits would eliminate the normal process that allows members of the public to speak on the issue with committee members who make recommendations to Council and also eliminate the opportunity to speak to the issue as it goes before Council for consideration. The change makes reference to there being legal requirements that there still be some avenue for public input, however real dialogue is not just the one-way communication of emailing or mailing in a letter. Dialogue that may bring understanding on both sides happens when all the interested parties are in the same room and can discuss and debate the whole issue and respond to each others’ concerns and grievances. Also people speaking at committee or council meetings become part of the legal minutes. Letters to staff may or may not be included in any committee or council minutes since the topic may never be brought up in committee or council, and thus there would be no record of the concerns of the general public.

There is also a proposal to rezone all nonALR lands currently designated AG1 to Rural Residential RR2 reportedly to end the confusion between ALR lands and AG1 lands. Check out this Monday’s 7PM Planning, Zoning & Affordable Housing Committee Meeting Agenda.

On Tues there are two more committee meetings. The Administration & Finance Committee meets at 4:45PM and will consider, among other things on the agenda, the “General Government Five-Year Financial Plan for 2012-2016″ which should include how the announced reduction in DCCs charged to developers at the time of rezoning will effective the City of Langford’s revenues.

The Transportation & Public Works Committee will meet after at 5:30PM and be considering, among other things on the agenda, a pedestrian crosswalk warrant at Bear Mountain Parkway and Millstream Road and the 2012 Engineering Department Capital Operations/Maintenance Budgets.

As a member of the public, the best time to get your input in is at the committee level. The committee members are appointed to committees specifically to discuss and debate the issues brought to them. They are are usually willing to try and understand and then to accommodate the concerns citizens bring forward.