Fort Langley At Risk Of Over Development?
Fort Langley At Risk Of Overdevelopment?
Two separate development applications on Glover Road and 96 ave now raise serious concerns for the character of Fort Langley's historic main street. Together they affect a significant portion of the downtown commercial core that has stood largely unchanged since the 1890s.
What Is at Stake
Fort Langley's Glover Road is one of the most intact 19th-century main streets in Western Canada. It is not a reconstruction or a theme park, it is a living, working community of independent shops, heritage buildings, and year-round residents who chose to live here precisely because of what makes it irreplaceable.
Project #001 - Glover, Mary Church Street
PROJECT #1
The GMC (Glover–Mary–Church) site sits at the very heart of this street. Bounded by Glover Road to the west, Mary Avenue to the north, and Church Street to the east, it occupies approximately 40% of Fort Langley's downtown commercial core. What is built here will define the character of the village for generations.
Glover, Mary Church Street Lot - up for development
In June 2025, Township of Langley Council approved — by a narrow 4-to-3 vote — a plan for two 3-storey mixed-use buildings on this site, containing 76 residential units. The project is developed by Fort Langley Properties Ltd., the business arm of a non-profit foundation led by Mayor Eric Woodward. The mayor declared a conflict of interest and left the chamber. His voting slate approved the project.
The concerns raised by residents and three dissenting councillors are not about whether Fort Langley needs housing. They are about process, scale, and the integrity of heritage protection. A Heritage Alteration Permit originally issued for a smaller, much lower-density project was extended and applied to this significantly denser development. They should have had to reapply for a NEW HAP permit, and many legal observers argue this extension is inconsistent with the Local Government Act. And because of Bill 44's changes to public hearing requirements, residents had no formal opportunity to speak against it.
Sign the petition here and share with friends and neighbors.
Project #002 - Hope Carriage House Project
PROJECT #2
The 2nd project, The Hope Carriage Barn, sits in downtown Fort Langley beside the Community Hall, within the historic village setting that gives this community its identity. It is an important piece of the area’s built heritage, not a disposable obstacle to redevelopment.
Hope Carriage Barn located behind the Fort Community Hall in McBride Station.
The Township’s active RO100319 file identifies a proposal to amend the Fort Langley Community Plan, increase the maximum mixed-use height to four storeys, and create a two-lot mixed-use subdivision with approximately 113 apartment units. A related active Heritage Revitalization Agreement application, RZ100802, proposes to restore, relocate, and convert the Hope Carriage Barn into indoor amenity space.
That proposal is a starting point—not a finished protection. Residents are asking the Township to make the carriage barn’s conservation legally binding, transparent, and durable. Its future should not depend on the fate, timing, or economics of the larger apartment project.
What we are petitioning for:
- A binding Heritage Revitalization Agreement with transparent restoration and relocation standards for the carriage house/barn.
- A meaningful public review of how a four-storey proposal fits beside the Fort Langley Community Hall and the historic village core.
- A **clear plan for parking—**not only for residents of the proposed building, but also for visitors and customers.
- A plan for future Fort Langley development that respects the community’s heritage status.
Posted Aug 12, 2026, 8:25 PM UTC