Langley, British Columbia (district municipality)

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Langley Township

(Flag) (Coat of Arms)
Mayor	Kurt Alberts
Councillors	Charlie Fox Howie Vickberg Grant Ward Jordan Bateman Steve Ferguson Kim Richter Mel Kositsky Bob Long
Population (2006)	93,726 [1]
Area	316 square kilometres[2]
Incorporation Date	April 26, 1873
Member of Parliament	Mark Warawa (Conservative)
Member of the Legislative Assembly	Mary Polak (BC Liberal Party), Langley
Member of the Legislative Assembly	Rich Coleman (BC Liberal Party), Fort Langley-Aldergrove

The Township of Langley is a district municipality east of Surrey, located south of the Fraser River in southern British Columbia. It is not to be confused with the City of Langley.

Contents 1 Government structure 2 Community attractions 3 History 4 Education 4.1 Schools 4.2 Colleges and universities 5 Recent developments 6 Communities 7 Surrounding municipalities 8 References 9 External links

[edit] Government structure

The Township of Langley is composed of an eight-member council and a mayor. All members of council are elected to three-year terms in elections that take place in late November.

• Mayor: Kurt Alberts

• Councillors:
  • Jordan Bateman
  • Steve Ferguson
  • Charlie Fox
  • Mel Kositsky
  • Bob Long
  • Kim Richter
  • Howie Vickberg
  • Grant Ward
• Incorporation date: 1873
• Population (2006): 93,726
• Area: 306.93 square kilometres

[edit] Community attractions

The Township of Langley is home to a number of well known structures. They include the Willowbrook Shopping Centre, the Famous Players Colossus Theatre Complex, Fort Langley, the Twilight Drive-in, the Canadian Museum of Flight, numerous parks, beaches, and horse farms - which garner Langley the title of "Horse Capital of British Columbia." Langley is also home to the Langley Ukulele Ensemble and has many sports clubs such as the South Langley Volleyball Club and the Langley Mustangs Football Club.

[edit] History

The Township is home to the birthplace of British Columbia, the historic fur trade post of Fort Langley.

The first Europeans to stay in the area permanently were the traders of the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC). In 1827, Fort Langley was built on the banks of the Fraser River, in the area now known as Derby Reach. It was one of a string of trading posts built up and down the Pacific Coast to compete with American fur traders for the rich pelts available in the region.

The first fort, built with two bastions, a wooden stockade and several buildings, proved to have been built too close to a fast-moving part of the river, in an area prone to flooding. It was rebuilt in 1839 farther upstream. As the HBC's network of forts in the interior grew, Fort Langley became a hub for farming, smithing and for shipping furs back to Europe.

In 1858, gold was discovered in the Fraser River in what is now the interior of British Columbia. With thousands of gold prospectors streaming into the province, the British government created British Columbia as a colony. James Douglas was sworn in as the new colony's first governor in Fort Langley, which was briefly the capital of the new region. The fort also became important as a supply station for the miners heading up the river toward the gold fields.

When the capital was moved to New Westminster, Fort Langley's importance began to decline. The Hudson's Bay Company subdivided and sold its farm on Langley Prairie. Logging and farming replaced fur trading as the dominant local industries.

[edit] Education

[edit] Schools

Langley Township is served by the School District 35 Langley. It also contains one francophone elementary school, which is part of the province-wide CSF (conseil scolaire francophone), School District 93.

[edit] Colleges and universities

Langley is home to Trinity Western University, a private Christian liberal arts university, and the Langley satellite campus of Kwantlen University College, a public undergraduate university college.

[edit] Recent developments

Recently, the Township of Langley has moved its Municipal Hall to a different area. The original Hall was placed in the "core area" of the Township. The new Civic Facility, however, is located in the growing Willowbrook area. A complete move was completed in February 2006. The new facility also includes a new library, fitness room (which incorporates a special type of hardwood floor room) and a new community policing station. The new facility's address is 20338 - 65 Avenue in Langley, British Columbia, Canada.

Construction of the Golden Ears Bridge has started.

[edit] Communities

• Aldergrove
• Brookswood
• Fernridge
• Forest Knolls
• Fort Langley
• Glen Valley
• Hopington
• Milner
• Murrayville
• Willoughby
• Walnut Grove

[edit] Surrounding municipalities

	Pitt Meadows, Barnston Island	Maple Ridge	Mission
	Surrey, Langley City		Abbotsford
		Township of Langley
	Blaine (Washington, USA)	Lynden (Washington, USA)	Sumas (Washington, USA)

[edit] References

1. ^ [/ Township of Langley]
2. ^

[edit] External links

• Township of Langley
• Langley School District 35