Langley Township is now considering sites and starting planning for three new major recreation facilities in the Willoughby area.
A motion by Mayor Eric Woodward called for a “general project scope review” for more community and recreation amenities, specifically including three projects:
• A new indoor pool and community centre within the Yorkson Community Park
• A new soccer campus in the Smith neighbourhood
• A new ice and dry-floor rec facility at the Langley Events Centre.
The projects are all campaign promises made by Woodward and his Contract with Langley slate, which won six of the nine seats on council in the recent elections.
Woodward and the other Contract with Langley members did not delay moving forward on the plans for the projects.
The motion, which received unanimous approval, including from two independent councillors, has a $300,000 budget.
Woodward said the initial round of funding, which council was pre-approving to be included in the 2023 budget, will allow municipal staff to identify potential sites and refine the scope of the projects.
“This is an initial fact-finding mission,” said Jason Winslade, the Township’s manager of administration and community services.
He said they were hoping to get underway quite soon. The initial report on the new ice rink at the LEC would probably be the quickest to complete, because the site has already been chosen, followed by the soccer campus, and then the indoor pool.
Once the fact-finding is complete, staff will report back to the council.
None of the three projects has been approved or has a budget yet.
The motion was one of a flurry of projects and changes the council started work on during the Monday, Nov. 14 council meeting, the first since they were sworn in.
Others included revamping the fees developers pay for local amenities, and adding 40 firefighters over the next four years.
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