Thursday October 5, 2023 | LANGFORD, BC [Updated 4:40 pm]
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends
Yesterday afternoon and evening the City of Langford hosted a public open house about their draft 2023-2027 Council Strategic Plan.
Held at the Eagle Ridge Community Centre from 3 to 8 pm, the drop-in event was an opportunity for Langford residents to review a wide range of aspects of the draft strategic plan and provide input both on display boards and to city leadership (staff and councillors).
Councillors mingling through the event included Kimberley Guiry, Colby Harder, Mark Morley, Lillian Szpak, Mary J Wagner and Keith Yacucha. City staffers on hand included Darren Kiedyk, CAO; Corporate Officer Braden Hutchins; Director of Planning Matthew Baldwin; Financial Director Mike Dillabaugh; and Senior Manager of Communications & Economic Development Donna Petrie. City of Langford Fire Chief Chris Aubrey also attended. SD62 Superintendent Scott Stinson dropped in.
The spacious venue allowed for a relaxed atmosphere and was considerate of health aspects of the fall respiratory season. Families found a few hands-on activities for kids to stay occupied while parents perused the many display boards and chatted with city leadership.
Display boards offered an opportunity for participation with ‘dots’ (stickers) to indicate support or non-support for various directions and initiatives. The colours of the dots were indicative of a person’s neighbourhood within Langford (i.e. Bear Mountain, North Langford, Thetis & Millstream, Mill Hill, Goldstream Meadows, City Centre, South Langford, Westhills, Langford Lake & Glen Lake).
The colourful dots were helpful to identify variation in responses based on the participant’s residential location. Participants could use red dots to show opposition — there seemed to be a lot of red dots on beefing up the tourism plan as well as active transportation.
Six priority areas:
The City of Langford launched its first 2023-2027 Draft Council Strategic Plan on September 21.
Developed over the past months, the draft Plan articulates Council’s vision and values, and sets bold objectives that the City says will guide them in addressing the urgent challenges related to continued growth in population, public health, housing unaffordability, increasing infrastructure costs, social inequity and climate change.
The Council Strategic Plan is centered around six strategic priority areas, with individual objectives in each of those areas.
For each objective, the Plan sets out an estimated timeline and whether the planned work is currently funded or will be funded in future budgets.
Inclusive approach:
Overall, the 2022-2026 council aims to “create a vibrant, thriving, inclusive and climate resilient community by making informed decisions for current and future generations including residents, businesses, and visitors”.
The Strategic Plan document is available online, with an introduction from Mayor and Council. A copy of the 2023-2027 Draft Council Strategic Plan is available at LetsChatLangford.ca. That’s a new public engagement portal launched by the City this summer.
The current council is headed by Mayor Scott Goodmanson, with councillors Kimberley Guiry, Colby Harder, Mark Morley, Lillian Szpak, Mary Wagner, and Keith Yacucha.
Advocacy role:
The Plan also recognizes the City’s important role as an advocate for those critical services beyond a typical local government mandate, including health care, transportation, housing, and education, and commits to proactively supporting partners doing this critical work for the community.
Complex crises:
In developing the Plan, it was clear to the city that — like so many communities across Canada — the growing municipality is facing “a diverse and complex set of crises so immense that they require the entire community to define a shared set of goals and to continually come together to address these crises”.
Public input:
With all of this in mind, Council welcomes input from the public on the 2023-2027 Draft Council Strategic Plan. They are hoping this will “ensure that the diverse needs of all citizens are heard”. Addressing those needs with solutions will be the further work of council.
A copy of the 2023-2027 Draft Council Strategic Plan is available at LetsChatLangford.ca. That’s a new public engagement portal launched by the City this summer.
The public will have the opportunity to provide input through an online survey, and in-person at a series of public engagement sessions.
Langford Council will consider approval of the Council Strategic Plan at their October 23, 2023 Council Meeting.
Draft 2023-2027 Council Strategic Plan | Fall 2023 public input timeline:
- September 21 – Public Engagement Commences – Survey open for public input
- Wednesday October 4 – Public Open House – 3 pm to 8 pm | Eagle Ridge Community Centre, 1089 Langford Pkwy
- Saturday October 7 – Council Engagement Pop-up – 10 am to 2 pm | Goldstream Farmers Market at Veterans Memorial Park, Aldwynd Rd
- Tuesday October 10 – Council Engagement Pop-up – 10 am to 12 pm | Poncho’s Café, 115-755 Goldstream Ave
- Sunday October 15 – Public Engagement Closes (survey closes at end of day)
- October 16 to 22 – City Staff Consolidates Data and Produces Staff Report to Council
- Monday October 23 – Council Considers Strategic Plan Approval