Should construction noise be permitted Saturday morning?

It’s 7am Saturday morning and you’re awoken from your slumber by the sounds of an excavator removing the earth from the ground.

To speed up home-building efforts, that could be the new reality for Langley Township residents. Council is considering whether the Township should follow Abbotsford, Chilliwack and other Fraser Valley communities by permitting Saturday construction to begin earlier.

But there are disagreements about balancing construction needs with residents’ desire for peace and quiet on weekend mornings.

The Township’s construction industry is at a disadvantage because it doesn’t allow for projects to begin before 9am on Saturday, Coun. Misty vanPopta argued during a recent council meeting. The later start times prolong construction and slow down home-building, she said.

“We are approving and desiring more and more housing to be built yet-hog tying the industry within the Langley Township by being uncompetitive and restrictive in our permissible work hours.”

The Township is one of the Fraser Valley’s largest municipalities that doesn’t permit construction before 9am on Saturdays. Work in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Mission, and Langley City can begin two hours earlier, at 7am. (A spokesperson for Mission told The Current that the city doesn’t have restrictions on noise levels yet, but staff are working on a noise report to share with council at a future meeting.)

vanPopta’s proposal asked staff to suggest new rules that would allow construction to begin Saturday in the rapidly developing areas of Willoughby, Brookswoods, and Aldergrove at 7am and conclude at 6pm. She suggested construction in other areas should start at 8am. The proposal also asked to permit concrete placement at 6am.

“Your neighbour can run his pressure washer from 7am to 10pm seven days a week… but currently in Langley Township an electrician cannot pull wire on Saturday morning before 9am nor a tiler can complete a bathroom after 5pm,” vanPopta said.

Coun. Barb Martens said she had “significant concerns” about the proposal.

As a former Vancouver police officer, Martens said she responded to noise complaints every weekend morning.

“There is a reason that municipalities have to balance the industry requirements or requests with the peace and quiet of the people living in the community.”

Martens used Richmond as an example of a municipality that has done it right. The city permits Saturday construction from 10am to 8pm.

Martens also reminded council that in 2015, construction hours in the Township were 7am to 10pm seven days a week. The Langley Advance Times reported the majority of complaints at the time were about concrete pours.

“The council at that time had to consider the vast number of construction noise complaints that were coming into their office and look at a reasonable compromise,” Martens said.

Martens asked that the proposal be referred to the council priorities committee for discussion when all members are present. (Councillors Margaret Kunst and Kim Richter were absent.) The referral was approved with councillors vanPopta and Michael Pratt opposed. A meeting is expected to be scheduled later this month.