Signature Move page 19
Times The Langley
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Taking a Stand page 6
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Fill foes not optimistic New bylaw will making illegal dumping tougher, says Township lawyer Monique TaMMinga Times Reporter
For several years, Langley Township staff, council, its lawyer and numerous rural residents have been knee-deep in discussions about how to handle controversial and profitable fill sites on agricultural land. On Monday night, council approved a revised soil deposit policy and bylaw that Township lawyer James Goulden said should make it harder to create illegal dumping sites. Councillor Kim Richter and David Davis were opposed. Modifications to the policy and bylaw were made from input received from concerned citizens, developers and council and finally the Township’s law firm Bull Housser and Tupper. The revised policy requires all applications over 600 cubic metres to go through a petition process whereby owners of properties within one mile (1.6 km) of the site can express support or opposition. While applications will be referred to the ALC, applications with less than 80 per cent support from neighbours may be rejected by council and not passed onto the ALC. The revised bylaw increases the security deposit. The current 10 applications in the hopper will be grandfathered and proceed under the old policy, said Township staff. Fill sites continue to be in high demand in Langley. Since 2010, according to the Township, 112 applications have been made for fill sites in Langley. At the Monday night meeting, Richter asked for the vote to be deferred. Her motion was defeated. “I was concerned with the material that was presented to us from different members of the community who have been working very hard for the past seven months to help us achieve a bylaw that is tight and that reflects the wishes of the community,” said Richter. “I’m concerned there is still outstanding items from their perspective so I would like to move a deferral of this bylaw to allow for a meeting to occur between the citizens who have been working on this, and the Township’s counsel, Mr. Goulden.” Councillor Bob Long wasn’t convinced. continued, PAGE 12
Monique TAMMINGA/Langley Times
A Langley RCMP officer walks toward the South Langley home where a man’s body was found along with a grow-op, at 200 Street and 20 Avenue. The murder took place around 10 p.m. on Tuesday, Feb. 26.
Grow-op at murder house Langley records first homicide of 2013 Monique TaMMinga Times Reporter
Homicide investigators are saying little about a body found at a Fernridge home which also contained a marijuana grow operation. Shortly after 10 p.m. on Tuesday, Langley RCMP received a call asking police to attend a residence in the 2000 block of 200 Street to check on the well being of a man who was staying at the residence. Police attended and located a deceased male and a grow-op inside the rural residence. “We are in the early stages of the investigation and processing the crime scene in an effort to determine what occurred inside the residence including the motive,” said Cpl. Adam MacIn-
g Comfort Spring
tosh of the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team. The deceased is a Caucasian man whose identity hasn’t been confirmed. MacIntosh said police won’t be releasing how the man was killed. It’s also not known how long his body was inside the home before police were called. Neighbour Mandy said a “Troy” lived at the home, which also contains a large barn in the back. She had no idea a grow-op was next door. However, she did note that the man living next door didn’t appear to work and was always home. “But there wasn’t cars coming and going from the home,” Mandy said. “Troy is a very nice guy,” she said. “He would call me if my dogs got out.” Her neighbour has a border collie and police weren’t commenting on the whereabouts of a dog living at that home. It should be noted that there is no confirmation that the body found in the home is that of the man who was
renting the house. Mandy said her neighbour appears to be in his late 40s or early 50s. She said her dogs didn’t bark last night until police arrived, which makes her think the body may have been there for a while. IHIT and Langley RCMP investigators are at the scene and will likely be there for the next couple of days. This is the first murder of 2013 in Langley. A 40-year-old man, Cole Manning, was murdered in a Willoughby basement suite on New Year’s Eve. Surrey’s Jason Brewer, 26, was arrested that day and charged with second degree murder. If anyone has information regarding this investigation, they can contact the IHIT tip line by calling 1-877-551-IHIT (4448) or by email at ihittipline@rcmpgrc.gc.ca. If you wish to remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or leave a tip on their website at Solvecrime.ca
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