Friday - Nov. 8, 2024 - Nearly 100 townhouses proposed for Willowbrook

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Good morning!

I’m typically not much of a doom-scroller, although I certainly have my moments. In times of stress, it is easy to get sucked into the stream of other people’s consciousness and find yourself barely treading water on the other side. And when that happens, I think about how beautiful newspapers are.

Before you even open it, you are greeted with the important things, an overview of what’s to come. Inside, there are a variety of stories, touching on a variety of topics. And then, when you’ve read it all, you can close the paper and leave the news behind.

It’s a luxury that our modern world doesn’t often afford us anymore. The news feels like it cannot be left behind. We cannot step to the side and take a breath. It is always there, waiting to wash us away.

I know the tips of your fingers won’t turn black when reading our newsletter. But I hope we are able to emulate the other nostalgic elements of a newspaper. A short jaunt through the news of the valley, with a mix of emotions packed within. Something you can read today, and then rest from until tomorrow, when we arrive in your inbox again.

– Grace

P.S. If you find this newsletter valuable (and even if you don’t), we’d love for you to take our survey. Just pretend there is a little boy on a bicycle asking you a bunch of questions as he hands you the paper.

Traffic & Weather

🌤 Local forecast: Langley | Chilliwack | Abbotsford | Hope (We have had to temporarily change our forecast links to the Weather Network due to a technical error.)

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🛣 Click here for links to road cameras across the Fraser Valley, including those for the Coquihalla, Highway 7, Hope-Princeton, Fraser Canyon, and Highway 1 in Langley and Abbotsford.

NEWS

What’s going on in the Fraser Valley housing market?

Although recent interest rate cuts have led realtors to herald the return of ‘healthy’ numbers of home sales, prices in the Fraser Valley continue to tread water.

For our ongoing (and evolving) monthly look at the Fraser Valley’s housing market, we’ve compiled 13 different custom charts to give readers a sense of prices in four different communities and among three different home types.

• Today, Tyler shares 13 charts outlining how the Fraser Valley’s housing market is doing this month.

• If you want the raw data you can find it here: Fraser Valley Real Estate Board | Chilliwack and District Real Estate Board.

Related

Need to Know

🔎 BC’s Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship is now investigating the destruction of Harrison’s ‘hobo hot springs’ [CTV]

💔 The search for Langley senior Jane Whitehouse has been suspended after two weeks; police and SAR members say she likely fell into a swollen creek [Fraser Valley Today]

⚖ A man charged with 16 robberies in communities from Chilliwack to Maple Ridge has been sentenced to nine years in prison; he had already served most of that time in custody before the sentence was pronounced [Abbotsford News]

💧 Chilliwack is drilling a well at Fairfield Park to irrigate its sports fields [City of Chilliwack/Facebook]

⛸ Harrison’s Starlight Skating Rink will be back for a short season this winter, after being shelved last year due to cost [Agassiz Harrison Observer]

⚠ Another semi-truck crashed into a Langley overpass Tuesday morning; it was the 21st collision this year, and a new record for Metro Vancouver [Langley Advance Times]

📱 An app that connects veterans’ memories to their tombstone using artificial intelligence is hoping to preserve war stories for the next generation [CBC]

🔬 BC’s only lab dedicated to keeping people safe from food poisoning is located in Burnaby; it’s responsible for finding biotoxins in shellfish, doing on-demand e. coli testing, and making sure food products are what they say they are [The Tyee]

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The Agenda

Nearly 100 new townhouses proposed for Willowbrook

Three houses on Langley’s Willowbrook Connector could soon be replaced by nearly 100 townhomes.

The proposed development, located on the Willowbrook Connector near 66A Avenue, would see 92 new townhouses—including a dozen with designated retail and commercial space—built on 4.5 acres of land. The 12 work-live townhouses would front 207th Street. The development would also include connections to nearby trails.

Although the existing houses are currently accessed from the Willowbrook Connector, the developer will need to create a road from a nearby street, and likely through adjoining properties. The developer said the design of the complex, and potentially the number of units, could change based on the eventual road access.

Council gave first and second reading to the proposal during its Monday meeting. Because the proposal requires a change to the area’s Official Community Plan, it will go to a public hearing before any decisions are made.

The land along the Willowbrook Connector has experienced significant growth over the years, and the road itself is currently being widened to the tune of $33.2 million. Properties adjacent to the proposed development are also being considered for townhouse complexes.

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🗓 Things to do

Art workshop: The Reach Gallery Museum hosts two family art-making workshops on Saturday, one from 12:30pm to 2pm, the other from 2:20pm to 4pm. Families of all kinds are welcome, although pre-registration is required. Details online.

Author fest: The Clearbrook Library hosts a Local Author Fest from 1-4pm on Saturday. Come to meet a variety of local authors and learn about their books. Details online.

Remembrance Day: In-person and virtual Remembrance Day ceremonies are happening across the Fraser Valley on Monday, Nov. 11 around 11am. You can find a list of ceremonies and locations here.

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Catch up

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