Christmas Count PAGE 5
THURSDAY January 8, 2015 • www.langleytimes.com
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NEWS End of an Era
BUSINESS Township Cracks Top 10
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SPORTS On Top of the World
TOL’s million dollar club
Everyone’s Chipping In
ASSESSMENTS SHOW TOWNSHIP HOME TO MOST VALUABLE PROPERTY IN THE FRASER VALLEY MONIQUE TA MMING A Time s Re po rte r
DAN FER GUS ON L an gley Tim es
Bonny Field (left) checks the skies for signs the Sunday downpour is easing while Tom Price, and Gord Field run Christmas trees through a wood chipper at the Derek Doubleday Arboretum. It marked the first time the by-donation annual fundraiser for the BC Cancer Foundation by Fields Tree Service has been held at that location.
The Township of Langley is home to the most expensive properties in the Fraser Valley, according to the latest data from BC Assessment. All but nine of the 100 top valued residential properties in the Fraser Valley are located in the Township. The most expensive property is acreage in the 19600 block of 0 Avenue, assessed at $8.7 million. The third highest-valued is a 10-acre property at 196 St. and 78 Avenue, assessed at $5.699 million and bought for $5.4 million in 2012. Last year, that same property was assessed at only $643,570. The reason for the “very significant increase” in
value ($5.4 million increase in one year) is because prior to this year, the rural property on the Langley-Surrey border had farm classification. That was removed this year, said BC Assessment assessor Raj Sandhu. The same farm status removal took place this year for the fourth-highest valued property in the Fraser Valley. A residential property at 6750 232 St. is now valued at $5.3 million, up from last year’s assessment of $838,195. The 156-acre property was sold for $5.5 million in 2013. As of Jan. 1, there are approximately 2,100 properties in the Township which have farm classification. Continued Page 6
Fort Langley retailers oppose transit tax BIA PRESIDENT RESIGNS FROM CHAMBER, SAYS IT ISN’T DOING ENOUGH TO FIGHT PROPOSAL D AN FERGU SO N Ti m e s Re po r t e r
A survey of Fort Langley retailers shows roughly nine out of 10 oppose a proposed tax to pay for public transit improvements. The door-to-door poll is being conducted by the Fort Langley Business Improvement Association (BIA), which represents 120 businesses. “It’s coming back 90 per cent opposed,”
Fort Langley BIA president Eric Woodward said. About a third of the businesses have responded so far. Later this year, Metro Vancouver residents will vote on the proposal from a council of Metro Vancouver mayors to use an 0.5 per cent tax to fund a $7.5-billion package of transit upgrades in the region. Woodward told The Times the tax increase will be a “major hit” for business-
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es near the border between Langley and Abbotsford, because Abbotsford is in the Fraser Valley Regional District and businesses in Abbotsford won’t have to charge the tax. If people can save a little by making a 10-minute trip, they will, Woodward predicted. “It’s a terrible deal for Aldergrove [businesses as well],” Woodward said. (See letter, page 9).
The tax will also mean added paperwork, Woodward warned, because “a lot of our merchants are going to have to file a separate [tax] return.” Last month, Woodward resigned from the board of the Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce, where he was the first vice-president, saying it should be doing more to fight the tax.
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