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IN THE LANGLEY TOWNSHIP COUNCILLOR RACE: Teresa Townsley

Ahead of Oct. 15, the Advance Times offers a profile and Q&A opportunity to each candidate
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Teresa Townsley is running for councillor in Langley Township. (Special to Langley Advance Times)

Teresa L. Townsley

RUNNING AS AN INDEPENDENT

Winery owner/farmer, age 54

Brookswood-Fernridge resident who’s lived in Langley 12 years

We can’t run up debt to the point of hamstringing our future.

Investments need to be made, but we have to have an ethical and common-sense approach that doesn’t bankrupt our future.

People are not commodities.

We need to have a buffer for emergencies and unforeseen circumstances. That is why we need a balance of experience and reason on council.

An experienced, independent candidate, I will make the right decisions for the right reasons. I plan for the future, not for the next election.

I have a proven track record successfully stewarding organizations through critical change and financial crisis.

As a farmer and co-chair of the Langley Farmers’ Institute, I support our farmers, farm viability, and the environment we farm in.

Vote Townsley for Township.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/ElectTeresaTownsley

Website: www.teresatownsley.ca

Phone: 604-928-2959

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Have you held office in past? If so, please specify: Yes. Formerly elected as Trustee in Delta.

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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. I support options that allow seniors to age in our community and also allow young families to enter the housing market. Targets bring the housing issues to the forefront of discussion. We can keep this issue of housing on the radar going forward with Provincial assistance.

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

Yes. While sports venues get a lot of attention, there is a huge demand for performing space and conference space within the Township. With smart planning, we could do both at the same venue and increase tourism dollars entering into the Township.

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

Yes. Emergency services coverage in the rural areas is problematic.

The province has downloaded the responsibility for medical calls onto our firefighters, without proper funding support.

Delays mean death.

I will be a strong voice to hold the province to account, to ensure we have proper funding to be able to accept those medical calls. At the same time, we need to expand our firefighting capacity and equipment to be more in line with the population we have.

As a former nurse, this basic safety need is a key issue in my platform and I believe that we need to strive toward a response time of less than five minutes with a “No call too small” philosophy that relies on the cooperation of police, fire, and ambulance.

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

No. With inflation at record highs, we would potentially place an unnecessary burden on our residents in a time of high financial stress. This would also prevent council from holding referendums to raise short term funding to build projects identified as important to the community in the form of project specific taxes.

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

Yes.

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?

No. Where we are failing in accommodating the increased population is with the lack of infrastructure and amenities provided by the Township. With careful planning, we can provide for those needs without bankrupting the Township’s future.

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

No. I came from Delta. The municipal police force had very high accountability to the public and I prefer that type of policing. However, the Township has other priorities at the moment that would take precedence over this expensive and cumbersome change in policing. My preference is to focus on other things first such as reducing call times for property crime in rural areas.

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

No. You can never have enough greenspace and parks.

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

Yes. For development, if we are truly wanting affordable housing, we need to reduce the time it takes for development permits to be awarded. My only caveat is that this cannot come at the expense of public consultation on development proposals. By strengthening the community plan, we can accomplish much of that before development occurs while being transparent in the process.

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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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