Margaret Kunst is the latest Langley Township councillor to announce she will run for re-election this fall, in the Oct. 15 municipal vote.
Kunst was first elected in 2018, and said that affordable housing, parks and rec facilities, and roads and transportation issues are key in the upcoming four-year term.
“Definitely housing is still something that I’m really passionate about,” Kunst said.
She said she knew of people who were relative newcomers to Langley, some having lived here 10 years, who are now being forced to leave because they simply can’t afford housing. Seniors and working families are also being pushed out, she said.
“It’s just become impossible for them to stay,” Kunst said.
Another key project is a long-simmering Township effort that Kunst would like to see keep moving forward if she wins another term.
The Township has been developing what’s dubbed an “arbour ribbon” since 2004.
When completed, the idea is that it will be a linear trail and greenbelt that runs along the edge of the Township’s urban areas, all the way from the Fraser River down to the U.S.-Canada border.
Some parts of it are already in place. The Derek Doubleday Arboretum, between Fraser Highway and 56th Avenue, would be part of a completed arbour ribbon, for example.
“We do have that willingness to have beautiful parks in Langley,” Kunst said.
She compared the long-term project to the creation of Vancouver’s Stanley Park in the 1880s.
Getting the arbour ribbon completed involves strategic land purchases over a long period of time, and stringing together the network.
Kunst also ran under the B.C. Liberal banner for the post of MLA in the Langley East riding during the last provincial election.
She said she learned a lot by running for another level of government.
While she didn’t rule out running again, she said it’s not likely in the near future, as she plans to stay committed to local government.
She has set up a campaign website, www.margaretkunst.ca.
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