8/19/2019 Langley Advance Welcome to the Neighbourhood page 26

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Langley AdvanceWelcome to the Neighbourhood, 2016   DEVELOPMENT

ley isn’t apy little farmingmunity anymore,t will keeping for years toe.

Many people moveto Langley everyday, which meansnear-constant con-

on is a feature of someeighbourhoods.u moved into a new homegley in the last year, thes are good you movede Willoughby area.a population of more

8,000 people, Willoughbymost populous neighbour-within the Township, andore people than Langley26,000 residents.n 2000, development hadbegun and Willoughby

ll almost entirely rural,rge acreages, hobbyand almost nothing but

ne roads.ley Township is one ofr fastest-growing com-es in the Lower Mainland,with Surrey, Coquitlam,botsford.11, Metro Vancouverplanning to absorb a fullllion new residents by

The population of theys, then standing at about0, was projected to almostto more than 249,000

nts.ently, Langley Township estimates

ulation at 116,000, giving Citywnship a combined population of0 people.vast influx of people means achange in the way housing is builtLangleys.ley was long a haven for sin-

mily homes with sizable yards.the past several years, new con-

on of townhouses and condos hased the building of single family usually by a wide margin.

ough the number of condosoughby, Walnut Grove, andyville remains small, more ared and under construction, withof five to six stories becoming

on.

ley Township council has beeng on local neighbourhood plans inlloughby area, which has resultede areas being developed faster thanThe southern parts of Willoughby,nown as the Willoughby Slope,

of 66th Avenue up to 72nd Avenue,gely developed. A northeasternWilloughby, Yorkson, is partly

ped and the center of most ofgoing construction. Areas west ofStreet and north of 76th Avenuee not yet under development areo be next for activity.r neighbourhoods will beped in the next several years,ng larger areas such as Carvolth00th Street and 86th Avenue, and

ith and Northeast Gordon areasof 76th along 208th Street.up for development is thewood and Fernridge area, a largeourhood south of Langley Cityn the border with Surrey and

Street.o 88,000 people are expectedntually make their homes in

Willoughby and the nearby Willowbrookarea – approximately the same populationall of Langley Township had in the mid-1990s.

The density and type of development inthat area is still up for debate, and localresidents are making their views knownas part of the planning process.

Other areas in Langley Townshipremain largely protected from develop-ment.

About 70 per cent of the Township ispart of the Agricultural Land Reserve,and cannot be easily developed.

Langley City is also hoping to grow inthe next few years but upwards throughdensification.

At just four miles square, Langley Citycan only grow by increasing its density,and it has an ambitious DowntownMaster Plan to add more people to itscore area, close to shopping and amen-ities such as its library and communitycentres.

Other neighbourhoods within Langley

Township are also seeing some growthand development, most on a smallerscale.

Murrayville, just to the east of LangleyCity, is still growing, and has in recentyears become home to a number ofseniors facilities, along with some newtownhouse and rental apartment develop-ments.

Aldergrove, at Langley’s eastern bound-ary, also has a plan to revitalize itsdowntown that could accommodate a sig-nificant amount of growth and add newresidents.

In Fort Langley, houses, townhouses,and condos were built along the water-front in recent years, on land once occu-

pied by a sawmill. Because of its nature– almost an island in the middle of farm-land – little new housing will be built inthe Fort village in the future.

A few small suburban developments arealso planned for central Langley, a largelyrural area with a few locations that canbe subdivided. Water service is allowingsome development in these areas.

fast growing, fast changing community 

Troy Landreville/Langley Advance

Construction of condos andtownhouses is underway constantlyin the Willoughby area. Thousandsof new residents have moved to thearea over the past 15 years and tensof thousands more are expected toarrive over the next 15 years.