The building boom in Langley may be most visible in new neighbourhoods, but some of the community’s oldest civic centres are also taking part – or hope to.
Langley City and the Township’s Aldergrove area both unveiled dramatic plans to revise and rebuild their cores almost a decade ago.
While one plan is seeing some success, the other remains stalled.
In 2008, Langley City unveiled its Downtown Master Plan.
The plan called for more building in the core areas around Fraser Highway, Douglas Crescent, and roads like Industrial Avenue.
Not every area has seen growth, but the plan has been a success and is attracting new projects, said Gerald Minchuk, the City director of economic development.
Although the Downtown Master Plan had many facets, growth in multi-family housing in several sectors was one of them.
In recent years, there has been growth around Park Avenue near Douglas Park, and west of the City’s centre.
Now projects on Eastleigh Crescent are starting up, and a development permit has been issued for a long-delayed condo complex on a former nightclub site on 203rd Street.
“Developing in the downtown core is very different from developing in Willoughby,” said Minchuk.
Re-developing more urbanized areas isn’t as easy as moving into an area of acreages – like Willoughby or Fernridge – and simply building.
Developer Randy Redekop, president of Reddale Construction, said there are some challenges to developing in an urban area.
“Land assembly is more complicated,” said Redekop. You have to buy more properties, and acquiring them all can take a year or more.
Construction can also be more complex.
“You have a lot less space to store stuff, you have to coordinate your deliveries a little more carefully,” said Redekop.
On the upside, there may be less infrastructure to install. In new areas, developers are often tasked with building much of the civic infrastructure – including widening roads and building sidewalks – from scratch.
Minchuk said the City in particular has a few advantages when it comes to development, one of which is the expected SkyTrain or light rail line coming to the City.
Rapid transit will be a game changer for the City, and developers are already interested, Minchuk said.
The other advantage is that the City has had apartments for decades.
“We recognized 20-some years ago that we needed to make wise land-use decisions,” he said.
Minchuk expects more growth soon.
“Behind the scenes, there’s been significant land acquisitions in the downtown core,” said Minchuk.
Aldergrove
Langley Township unveiled its plans for downtown Aldergrove in 2010. It called for more population, greater density, and higher buildings in some areas.
However, the plan has not attracted much development interest.
Township Councillor Bob Long noted that there were a number of impediments to further growth, including the lack of adequate water and sewer infrastructure.
But new water and sewer lines have ended those issues.
There is still the existing streetscape to deal with, Long noted.
“An existing building may not have the proper setbacks or parking requirements,” he explained.
Building on an urban lot may mean a lot of work, and a lot more money spent up front, for a developer.
There have been a few recent developments proposed for the area – single-family housing developments around the edges of the community. None are aimed at the downtown areas that the plan was intended to revitalize.
Now the Township is pinning its hopes on the new recreation centre, including a pool and ice arena. It is scheduled to open next year.
It will free up land when the old ice arena is dismantled, likely to become a mix of housing types, Long said.
Township Mayor Jack Froese had said he hopes the new centre will help attract development to the downtown.
The other major project is expected to be the redevelopment of the Aldergrove Mall. Though it has long since lost most of its small tenants, its owners, the Janda Group, want to rebuild on the site.
Its plan for a large, mixed-use development would add housing but retain a grocery store, pharmacy, banking, and medical services on the site.