Langford
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Langford – the little community that could.
Langford was a sleepy bedroom community on Victoria’s West Shore. It may still be a bedroom community. But not ’sleepy’. Anything but. And it has bigger aspirations than to remain a bedroom community.
The other communities near Victoria sat up and took notice when Langford put out the welcome mat for Costco. Other municipalities said ‘not in my back yard’. But Langford recognized its progressive vision of its future faced some harsh ecomic hurdles unless it could somehow expand its tax base. Along came Costco.
That was just the beginning. Love them or hate them, ‘big box’ stores are here to stay, and Langford drew them like bees to honey. Other more traditional stores followed suit, taking up space in a new shopping area across the street from the giants.
There is much more economic activity than that. Just up the road a short distance past all this new retail activity is the entrance to what is currently the largest development in the whole greater Victoria region - The ‘Bear Mountain Resort’. With a Whistler-like resort village centre at its heart, this development will add about 5,000 luxury living units to southern Vancouver Island. One of it’s two 18 hole Nicklaus-designed golf courses has been in play for several years, and the second (in adjacent Highlands) is currently under construction.
In light of Bear Mountain, one might wonder whether Landford is becoming an area exclusively for the rich and famous? Not at all. Between the 2001 and 2006 Canada Census, Langford’s population jumped by double digit percentages, and now sits around 25,000 plus. Bear Mountain by no means represents all this growth.
The Capital Regional District growth projections estimate Langford will absorb a very significant part of net regional growth over the next two decades, at which time Langford’s population might double.
Why? Because Langford, along with other West Shore communities, have what municipalities on the Saanich Peninsula lack – space for growth, along with lower land costs that come with it. Careful planning and management of that growth will be key. If the recent past is an indicator, it looks like Langford is up to the task.
Langford’s approval processes for development applications seem to tick along more efficiently than elsewhere. This doesn’t mean it’s been lax. With a goal of transitioning from a suburban community to a significant city centre in its own right, Langford plans carefully, and requires developers to make significant contributions to community amenities.
This community has been an example to others in terms of housing afford ability. It was the first municipality to authorize secondary suites in new residential construction. It also implemented the ‘Affordable Housing Program’ which requires developers to provide one ‘affordable’ housing unit for each 10 new units constructed. During it’s first three years, this Program added 30 truly affordable housing units to Langford.
At this time, Langford’s development strategy for the future is set out in its newly drafted Official Community Plan (OCP), now in the public hearing stages. How does Langford view their OCP? As the ‘ …community’s sustainability roadmap’.
But in any community experiencing rapid change there is always debate, and Langford is no exception. A website called Inside Langford was recently created specifically to oppose Langford’s plan borrowing plans to facilitate construction of an new overpass, but has since taken on a larger role of community news site.
Look for interesting times ahead in Langford.
