Langley, British Columbia (city)
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The City of Langley, commonly referred to as Langley City, or just Langley, is a municipality in the
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in
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, Canada. It lies directly east of
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, adjacent to the Cloverdale area, and is surrounded elsewhere by the Township of Langley, bordered by its neighbourhoods of Willowbrook to the north, Murrayville to the east, and Brookswood and Fern Ridge to the south.


History

Early European settlement in the area was known as "Innes Corners" (after homesteader Adam Innes); in 1911, the area became known as "Langley Prairie", part of the Township of Langley a.k.a. Langley Township since 1873. Twentieth-century improvements in transportation access, including the construction of the
British Columbia Electric Railway The British Columbia Electric Railway (BCER) was an historic railway which operated in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Originally the parent company for, and later a division of, BC Electric Company (now BC Hydro), the BCER assumed cont ...
in 1910, Fraser Highway in the 1920s, and
Pattullo Bridge The Pattullo Bridge is a through arch bridge that crosses the Fraser River and links the cities of New Westminster and Surrey in Metro Vancouver, British Columbia. It was named in honour of Thomas Dufferin Pattullo, the 22nd Premier of British ...
in 1937, profoundly impacted the area, transforming it from rural into the main urban and commercial core of the Township. In turn, this birthed the need for upgraded and new amenities, especially with respect to health, infrastructure, safety and sanitation. The municipal government, however, refused to finance these projects as it bowed, instead, to politically influential farming communities and smaller, mostly rural, business centres, like Fort Langley, Milner and Murrayville, that viewed such spending as unnecessary. Talk of secession began in Langley Prairie in the 1930s, as a result. Headed by a panel of important residents and businesspersons, including Richard Langdon, president of the Langley Board of Trade, the push for independence came to a head in the 1950s. Specifically, two issues decided Langley's future. First was street lights, which Langley Prairie argued were needed not only for safety but also progress, yet on which reeve George Brooks declared "not a nickel" would be spent. Second was Langley Prairie's belief that it had neither the political sway nor fair share of municipal services that it deserved relative to its local tax contribution. Langley Prairie by then constituted 20% of the Township's tax base. A referendum on secession was therefore held in September, 1954. It passed with over 85% of the vote. Langley Prairie officially seceded and became the City of Langley on March 15, 1955.


City plan


Road network

Langley City follows the same block system as its neighbouring Township of Langley as well as other Districts in the Fraser Valley, where Streets run north-south, and Avenues run east-west.


Development barriers

Many natural and artificial barriers prevent Langley City from following a complete tidy grid: * The land governed by the City is not a rectangle but an uneven shape with "cut-out" corners. * Fraser Highway intersects the City at an approximate 45-degree angle North West to South East, mirrored by Glover Road which enters the city North East to South West. * The Nicomekl River flows through the middle of the city East to West. * Railroad tracks run across the north of the City. This has affected development in a number of ways, for example, the Langley Bypass turns 45 degrees in the north-west, tracing the boundary outline since it was constructed by the City and could not go over the boundary into the Langley Township. Many streets come to an abrupt halt when reaching the river and continue on the other side without a connecting bridge. Roads such as Douglas Crescent, Logan Avenue, and Eastleigh Crescent parallel the 45-degree angles of Fraser Highway and Glover Road, almost proposing an alternative grid at an angle which conflicts with the grid in place. Even Grade Crescent, which is much further south than these roads, follows this same angle, demonstrating the impact Fraser Highway had on the development of Langley.


Downtown

Langley City's Downtown was developed around Old Yale Road, which later on became Fraser Highway. Until 1964, Fraser Highway was part of the
Trans-Canada Highway The Trans-Canada Highway (Canadian French, French: ; abbreviated as the TCH or T-Can) is a transcontinental federal–provincial highway system that travels through all ten provinces of Canada, from the Pacific Ocean on the west coast to the A ...
network - this major route attracted many businesses to the area.City of Langley
History of Langley
Today, with the Trans-Canada Highway now in the north of the Langley Township, the downtown is more pedestrian oriented. Where Fraser Highway goes through the downtown it is reduced to a single lane of traffic in one direction to limit traffic flow. This stretch is often affectionately referred to by residents as "The One-Way" and is lined with restaurants and shops on either side, making it a retail centre in the city. Douglas Park is also near this area in the downtown and is seen as the main park in the city, frequently being used for events and shows. In Summer 2013, McBurney Plaza opened to the public replacing McBurney Lane (previously used as a parking lot). This area connects Fraser Highway and Douglas Park with a pedestrian boulevard, providing outdoor space for cafes and space the city can use for street performance and other civic events. Just outside this downtown centre are
strip mall A strip mall, strip center, strip plaza or simply plaza is a type of shopping mall, shopping center common in North America and Australia where the stores are arranged in a row, with a footpath in front. Strip malls are typically developed as a ...
s and a number of low rise apartment buildings. Most detached housing remains outside the downtown area.


Childcare

By 2024, Langley had 1,400 childcare spots, which was less than needed. In 2024, amid a shortage of childcare facilities in Langley, the City Council limited the opening of new childcare facilities within a section of downtown Langley. Mayor Nathan Pachal who supported the motion said that there was now an opportunity for the city to get creative to find new ways to create childcare spaces in other areas of the city, particularly residential areas.


Parks

There are over 17 public parks in this city. They range from small neighbourhood adventure playgrounds, to larger parks with nature trails, wildlife, and various sporting fields and equipment.


Brydon Park

This park contains an adventure playground, a paved play area for ball hockey and basketball, an intermediate soccer field, and a softball diamond. Public washrooms are available, though a close eye on your children is advisable, as used needles and other drug paraphernalia are often found lying in the open. Brydon Lagoon is south of the park and has a peaceful perimeter walk around the lagoon where one may observe wildfowl and turtles.City of Langley Parks and Trails Website


City Park

This park features Al Anderson Memorial Pool, a children’s waterpark and playground, a lacrosse box, twelve picnic tables, and public washrooms. A covered picnic shelter that can accommodate up to 75 people is available and can be booked for a picnic.


Uplands Dog Off-Leash Park

This is an 18-acre, fully fenced area with a perimeter walking path. Dogs and their owners can meet and enjoy a large open space for walking and playing. There is also a drinking fountain designed for both dogs and people.


Douglas Park

Douglas Park is located at the
intersection In mathematics, the intersection of two or more objects is another object consisting of everything that is contained in all of the objects simultaneously. For example, in Euclidean geometry, when two lines in a plane are not parallel, their ...
of Douglas Crescent and 206th Street in Langley,
British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...
, Canada. The park contains an adventure playground, two tennis courts, a water park (seasonal), bowling green, sports box, basketball hoops and public washrooms. It also has an outdoor covered performance platform called "Langley Spirit Square". Langley Spirit Square is the site of an annual Shakespeare performance, "Bard in the Valley." Douglas Recreation Centre, situated in the park, offers many programs for the citizens of Langley and is also available for rentals such as wedding receptions or banquets and other events. In 2000, there were plans to build a library in the park, but public opposition forced the library be built elsewhere. In 1971, Langley's city council had plans to install a
Chinese garden The Chinese garden is a landscape garden style which has evolved over three thousand years. It includes both the vast gardens of the Emperor of China, Chinese emperors and members of the imperial family, built for pleasure and to impress, and t ...
in the park, but this was never carried out. In 1982, a
day care Child care, also known as day care, is the care and supervision of one or more children, typically ranging from three months to 18 years old. Although most parents spend a significant amount of time caring for their child(ren), childcare typica ...
centre in the park was replaced by a
bowls Bowls, also known as lawn bowls or lawn bowling, is a sport in which players try to roll their ball (called a bowl) closest to a smaller ball (known as a "jack" or sometimes a "kitty"). The bowls are shaped (biased), so that they follow a curve ...
meeting house and a
bowling green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...
was established adjacent to it. Douglas Park is the main park in the City of Langley for events, festivals and other civic activities. Featuring a permanent stage, the park is equipped for live performance of music, theatre and other arts.


Linwood Park

This park contains a fenced dog park and a wheelchair accessible playground. Public washrooms are available.


Nicomekl Park

This park has a suitable parking area and is the starting point to enter the floodplain and various walking trails.


Penzer Action Park

This park is home to North America's largest Parkour Course, with an in-ground trampoline, numerous climbing walls, balance beams, and swinging bars will provide hours of creative physical fun. In addition, there is a kid size parkour course, a basketball court with optional volleyball net, dirt jumps for mountain bike enthusiasts, and a pump track. A nature trail passes through the park.


Rotary Centennial Park

This park contains a playground, ball diamond, senior soccer field, display garden beds, and public washrooms. A paved walking path follows the perimeter, and the facilities are wheelchair accessible.


Sendall Gardens

This park contains botanical gardens that feature 3.67 acres of plants, shrubs and trees. A nature trail passes through this park, and there are two duck ponds. There are several varieties of wildfowl in the park, including geese and ducks. The tropical greenhouse has a wide variety of exotic plants and is open to the public April 1 to October 1.


Sports

The Langley Rams of the British Columbia Conference of the
Canadian Junior Football League The Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) is a national Canadian football league consisting of 19 teams playing in five provinces across Canada. The teams compete annually for the Canadian Bowl. Many CJFL players move on to professional footbal ...
are based at the MacLeod Stadium in the Township of Langley. The Langley Rivermen of the
British Columbia Hockey League The British Columbia Hockey League (BCHL) is an independent Canadian Junior ice hockey league with 21 teams in British Columbia and Alberta. It was classified as a Junior "A" league within the Hockey Canada framework, until it became independe ...
, the Vancouver Giants of the
Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...
and the Vancouver Bandits of the
Canadian Elite Basketball League The Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL; ) is the premier men's professional basketball league in Canada, as recognized by Canada Basketball. The CEBL was founded in 2017 and began play in 2019 with six teams all owned and operated by owner ...
are based at the Langley Events Centre in the Township of Langley. The Langley Blaze of the Premier Baseball League is based at McLeod Park. A local Little League baseball team represented Canada in the 2011 Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA. Brett Lawrie, an infielder for the
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is from Langley, as is professional cyclist Svein Tuft of the Greenedge Cycling Team. The Langley Thunder is a Senior A team in the
Western Lacrosse Association The Western Lacrosse Association (WLA) is a men's Senior A box lacrosse league with seven teams in British Columbia. The playoff championship team each season advances to the play against the Major Series Lacrosse champions for the Mann Cup. The ...
, part of the
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.


Education

School District 35 Langley operates public schools. The City of Langley is home to six Elementary schools and one
Middle school Middle school, also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school, is an educational stage between primary school and secondary school. Afghanistan In Afghanistan, middle school includes g ...
, H. D. Stafford Middle School. Five major high schools are located in the surrounding area; Brookswood Secondary School, Langley Secondary School, D. W. Poppy Secondary School, Walnut Grove Secondary School, & R. E. Mountain Secondary School. They are located in the Township of Langley. The '' Conseil scolaire francophone de la Colombie-Britannique'' operates one Francophone school: ''école des Voyageurs'' primary school. Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) and
Trinity Western University Trinity Western University (TWU) is a Private university, private Christian liberal arts university with campuses in both Langley, British Columbia (district municipality), Langley and Richmond, British Columbia, Richmond, British Columbia. The ...
(TWU), which is a private Christian liberal arts university, both have campuses in Langley. Both KPU and TWU are members of
Universities Canada Universities Canada () is an organization that represents Canada's universities. It is a non-profit national organization that coordinates university policies, guidance and direction. Formed in 1911, as the Association of Universities and Colleg ...
. Langley Community Music School was founded in 1969 and is the third largest community music school in the province.


Transportation

Major roads in the City of Langley include 200 Street, 64 Avenue, Fraser Highway, Glover Road, and the Langley Bypass which carries part of British Columbia Highway 10. These roads serve as the backbone of the road infrastructure network by handling traffic from the west in Surrey, Delta, and Ladner, as well as from the east in Aldergrove and Abbotsford. Trains from across the country pass by the city on a regular basis. A major rail corridor runs alongside the Langley Bypass and towards the Roberts Bank Superport, which handles the export and import of various commodities coming in and out of Asia. The City of Langley is served by TransLink, which operates the regional transportation network of
Metro Vancouver The Metro Vancouver Regional District (MVRD), or simply Metro Vancouver, is a Canadian political subdivision and Corporation, corporate entity representing the metropolitan area of Greater Vancouver, designated by provincial legislation as o ...
. Langley is served by several regular bus routes, and six "community shuttle" routes operating smaller capacity mini-buses. Currently, Langley doesn't have a rapid transit service, but an extension of the SkyTrain's Expo Line is planned, and it will reach all the way to the city of Langley, which is planned to have one station. They are aiming to finish construction by 2028. The Fraser Highway is one of the major east-west corridors servicing the City of Langley and the Township of Langley. The "502" bus route operates on a 15-minute headway (12 minutes during rush hour) from the Surrey Central Station in north Surrey to the Langley Centre bus loop in the City of Langley via Fraser Highway. The "503" Express service, launched on June 23, 2014, provides express service between Surrey Central Station and Langley Centre and local service through the Township of Langley into Aldergrove. In September 2019, the 503 was upgraded to provide service every 8 minutes during peak hour. Riders are now given the benefit of being able to board and get off the bus at any 503 stop. The other major routes include the "320 Surrey Central Station" (via Cloverdale), "341 Guildford" (via Cloverdale, & Newton), the "364 Scottsdale" (via 64th avenue), and the "501 Surrey Central Station" (via 200 St, Carvolth Exchange, Port Kells Industrial and to Surrey Central Station via Guildford Exchange. The "595" to Maple Ridge heads along 208 street, and across the Golden Ears Bridge. As of December 1, 2012, TransLink had created a new "555 Port Mann Express /
Lougheed Town Centre Station Lougheed Town Centre (sometimes abbreviated as Lougheed) is an elevated station on the Expo Line (TransLink), Expo and Millennium Lines of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain (Vancouver), SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located at British Co ...
" rapid bus service which operates between Carvolth Exchange (in Langley Township) and
Lougheed Town Centre Station Lougheed Town Centre (sometimes abbreviated as Lougheed) is an elevated station on the Expo Line (TransLink), Expo and Millennium Lines of Metro Vancouver's SkyTrain (Vancouver), SkyTrain rapid transit system. The station is located at British Co ...
(in
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) via Highway 1, with just one stop along the way in
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. This bus takes approximately 20 minutes from start to finish in one direction. It runs frequently; approximately every 15 minutes during peak times, and every 30 minutes during off-peak times.


Arts and culture

Langley is home to the Arts Alive Festival in August, and the Langley Ukulele Ensemble.


Government

Langley City Council has seats for one mayor and six councillors. Each serves a 4-year term and attends council meetings on a bi-weekly basis. Other governmental departments include the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, Corporate Services, Development Services & Economic Development, Engineering, Parks & Environment, Recreation, Culture and Community Services, and the Langley City Fire Rescue Service. The City of Langley has a joint RCMP detachment with the township of Langley. Langley is also a key component in the Canadian federal electoral district of the same name, which was formed in 2004. The Member of Parliament for the constituency is Liberal John Aldag.


Climate


Demographics

In the 2021 Census of Population conducted by
Statistics Canada Statistics Canada (StatCan; ), formed in 1971, is the agency of the Government of Canada commissioned with producing statistics to help better understand Canada, its population, resources, economy, society, and culture. It is headquartered in ...
, Langley had a population of 28,963 living in 12,598 of its 13,271 total private dwellings, a change of from its 2016 population of 25,888. With a land area of , it had a population density of in 2021.


Ethnicity

*Note: Totals greater than 100% due to multiple origin responses.


Religion

According to the 2021 census, religious groups in Langley included: *
Irreligion Irreligion is the absence or rejection of religious beliefs or practices. It encompasses a wide range of viewpoints drawn from various philosophical and intellectual perspectives, including atheism, agnosticism, religious skepticism, ...
(13,790 persons or 49.2%) *
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
(11,430 persons or 40.8%) *
Sikhism Sikhism is an Indian religion and Indian philosophy, philosophy that originated in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent around the end of the 15th century CE. It is one of the most recently founded major religious groups, major religio ...
(1,045 persons or 3.7%) *
Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
(800 persons or 2.9%) *
Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...
(360 persons or 1.3%) *
Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...
(350 persons or 1.2%) *
Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...
(35 persons or 0.1%) *Other (220 persons or 0.8%)


Infrastructure

Langley's community facilities include: * Timms Community Centre * Al Anderson Memorial – 25-metre public swimming pool * Douglas Recreation Centre * Langley Fire Rescue Hall * Langley City FVRL Library * Cascades Casino, Coast Hotel & Convention Centre * Numerous parks


Neighbourhoods

The City of Langley's Community Profile identifies six neighbourhoods based on elementary school catchment area: Nicomekl, Douglas, Simonds, Blacklock, Alice Brown and Uplands.


Notable people

* Wes Barker, magician * Dennis Cholowski, NHL defenseman for the
Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...
* Amanda Crew, actress * Georgia Ellenwood, 2018 NCAA Heptathlon champion * Jose Figueroa took refuge in Langley * Danton Heinen, NHL player for the
Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...
* Carle Hessay, painter * Brett Lawrie, baseball player * Chelsea McMullan, documentary filmmaker * J. Jill Robinson, author of fiction and
creative nonfiction Creative nonfiction (also known as literary nonfiction, narrative nonfiction, literary journalism or verfabula) is a genre of writing that uses literary styles and techniques to create factually accurate narratives. Creative nonfiction contrasts ...
* Brian Smith, the guitarist for the rock band Trooper. * Dallas Smith, the lead vocalist for the rock band Default and country music singer. * Tom Thacker, guitarist and vocalist with Gob and
Sum 41 Sum 41 was a Canadian rock band formed in Ajax, Ontario, in 1996. The band's final lineup consisted of Deryck Whibley (lead vocals, guitars, keyboards), Dave Baksh (lead guitar, backing vocals), Jason McCaslin (bass, backing vocals), Tom T ...
* Shea Theodore, NHL defenseman for the
Vegas Golden Knights The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Golden Knights compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division ...
* Jacob Tremblay, actor known for leading roles in
Room In a building or a ship, a room is any enclosed space within a number of walls to which entry is possible only via a door or other dividing structure. The entrance connects it to either a passageway, another room, or the outdoors. The space is ...
, Before I Wake, and Good Boys * Leonard Woods, sculptor


Notes


References

* ''From Prairie to City: A History of the City of Langley,'' Warren F. Sommer, 1995.


External links

* * {{Coord, 49.1041, N, 122.65758, W, type:city_region:CA-BC, display=title Cities in British Columbia