Langley’s ban on new development could be called off

Published 12:00 pm Wednesday, February 1, 2006

The moratorium currently blocking new subdivisions from being developed in Langley’s Zone D could be discontinued at Wednesday’s public hearing.

The city has spent the past 60 days documenting “findings of fact” about Zone D. After compiling these findings, Langley’s city staff is recommending the moratorium be lifted and the area’s current zoning be retained.

Langley Mayor Neil Colburn said he did not steer the staff in any one direction as the recommendation was prepared.

“My instruction to the staff was to be as absolutely humanly objective as possible,” Colburn said.

“I’m trying to provide the council with enough information to make an informed decision,” Colburn said.

The staff’s recommendation, along with public input, will be considered when Langley’s city council decides about whether or not to carry the moratorium out for the remainder of its six-month span.

Before the moratorium can be discontinued, the city council will have to vote to remove it.

Council members will have to decide whether to go along with the staff recommendation, or to keep the moratorium in place.

Edgecliff neighborhood residents are likely to express opposition to the city’s suggestion to get rid of the ordinance.

Edgecliff residents have urged the city to pay closer attention to the environmental characteristics of their neighborhood, and to conduct studies to find out what needs to be done to protect the land and prevent future problems with stormwater runoff. The neighborhood has a history of landslides.

Edgecliff residents began their plea to the city in August with the submission of a petition signed by more than 100 neighborhood residents. The petition sparked a review process that ultimately led to the city’s moratorium, the first building ban in the city’s history.

One of the Edgecliff neighborhood’s main concerns was the consequences added development could have on their neighborhood, particularly to the stability of their bluff.

According to the city staff report on the moratorium, Langley’s land-use planner Alice Schisel has recommended that the moratorium be discontinued because the city can impose restrictions on development proposals to avoid negative environmental impacts within Zone D. The report also says that the current availability of information about water conditions in Zone D’s drainage basin remains incomplete.

At the public hearing the city will present their findings and the public will have a chance to provide comments.