IN THE LANGLEY TOWNSHIP COUNCILLOR RACE: Kim Richter

Kim Richter

RUNNING AS AN INDEPENDENT

Post-secondary educator, no age given

Salmon River Uplands resident who’s lived in Langley 36 years

I am seeking another council term because Langley Township is at a major crossroads.

We face three immediate crises that must be effectively dealt with over the next council term for the ongoing livability, health, and safety of our community.

These are: 1) cost of living crisis; 2) climate change crisis; and 3) governance crisis.

With 20+ years’ experience on council and as a business management professor, I have six priorities that guide my decision-making: community, preservation, safety, affordability, ethics, and accountability.

All of these should be considered equally in any council decisions made.

I will continue to work hard for you, and to ensure that your voice is heard in every council decision.

I respectfully ask again for your vote and your trust.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/kim.richter2

Twitter: @KimAnneRichter

Website: www.kimrichter.com

Instagram: @kim.anne.richter

Phone: 604-856-9788 or 778-979-0839

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Have you held office in past? If so, please specify: – Yes. Langley Township Councillor (1999 to Present); Metro Vancouver Regional Board Director (2018 to Present); Metro Vancouver Housing Board Director (2018 to Present); Greater Vancouver Water District Board Director (2018 to Present); Greater Vancouver Sewerage & Drainage District Board Director (2018 to Present)

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CLICK TO CHECK OUT OUR FULL ELECTION GUIDE ONLINE

Questions:

(These answers are presented as the candidates submitted them)

1. Should the Township set targets for the creation of more low-income and seniors rental spaces, social housing units, and/or co-op development to improve home security?

Yes,

2. Should the Township create a performing arts venue within the next council term?

Yes.

3. Does the Langley Township fire department need to be expanded in terms of crews, equipment, and/or halls?

Yes.

4. Should property tax increases be restricted to the rate of inflation or lower?

No. In normal and stable economic times, I think taxes should be limited to cost of living or lower. However, we are not currently in a normal or stable economic period.

Inflation is growing dramatically and a recession is looming. The Bank of Canada is increasing interest rates in order to slow down inflation. All of these are creating the cost-of-living crisis that residents are now facing.

To link property tax increases to the rate of inflation right now would be a big mistake in my opinion, because it will only add to the cost-of-living crisis for residents.

Rather, council should do as much as possible to not raise property taxes until the economy has stabilized.

The Township should be tightening its belt and living within its current means until Canadian economic stability is achieved – however long that takes.

Furthermore, in my opinion the Township should definitely not be going on a ‘spending spree’ in these uncertain economic times.

5. Should the Township encourage greater housing density in new and existing neighbourhoods?

Yes.

In order to protect ALR land for food production and food security while meeting the need for more housing especially affordable housing, we are going to have to densify.

However, I think we need to slow down our current rate of growth in new neighbourhoods and require an orderly progression from one logical/directional area to the next rather than allowing housing starts in several new neighbourhoods at the same time. Furthermore, Council needs to stick to the designated densities in approved neighbourhood plans rather than permitting every application to be amended for increased density. Such unregulated density and patchwork growth in the opening of new neighbourhoods is what is significantly driving up the cost pressures for the Township.

In established neighbourhoods, Council should be encouraging gentle densification through more innovative approaches like the ‘Garden Suites’ currently permitted in Toronto and Edmonton.

Finally, in my opinion, 45-storey towers consisting of 500 square foot boxes are not liveable in any sense of the word. New development in Langley Township needs to be human-scaled first and foremost.

6. Should the Township do more to build and upgrade roads, sidewalks, and bike paths in fast-growing areas?

Yes.

7. Is the Township’s population growing too fast?

Yes.

8. Should the Township consider switching to a municipal police force, instead of using the RCMP?

Don’t know. This decision should be based on both cost-effectiveness and policing-effectiveness. I am watching the current Surrey transition with great interest to see what the final outcome there will be.

9. Does the Township have enough parks and public spaces to meet the needs of its growing population?

No.

10. Should the Township commit to making a decision on proposed new developments within 12 months or less?

Yes.

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CLICK ON OUR ELECTIONS 2022 TAB TO FIND A WIDE VARIETY OF RELEVANT STORIES

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EDITOR’S NOTE:

How the questions were presented to each candidate

Langley Advance Times readers have repeatedly told us how much they value this important, straight-forward reference guide that helps orient them with the range of choices on the ballots – both at the council and school board levels.

Towards that end, we have attempted to make this package available (along with the following instructions) to each of the candidates in a timely fashion ahead of the Oct. 15 election.

Please read carefully before you start to fill this out.

To help voters in Langley make their choices on election day, the Langley Advance Times is asking local candidates 10 issue-based questions.

You must provide a ‘yes,’ a ‘no,’ or a ‘don’t know’ (Y, N, D) response to EACH of these questions.

Each question MUST be answered with yes (Y), no (N), or Don’t Know (D). This will be published in a grid in the Oct. 6 edition. Any questions not answered will be LEFT BLANK.

Candidates may also expand on ANY OR ALL of these questions (to a maximum of 200 words each). Please note any responses longer than that will be cut off at the 201-word mark.

Due to space limitations, we can only guarantee to run one of these answers in the Langley Advance Times print edition ahead of the election. You must CLEARLY indicate which expanded answer you want to see published in print. If you do not specify, we will choose. Any and all expanded answers provided will be published online at www.langleyadvancetimes.com.

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