Township council, July 13: the new servicing bylaw moves ahead without extra consultation, and an $88.9 million Fraser Highway ask
Township council pushed its updated servicing bylaw forward, looked at an $88.9 million grant bid for Fraser Highway, changed loading and accessible parking rules and heard from residents on truck parking and tree fines.
- Meeting
- Regular Council Meeting, Monday, July 13, 2026, 1:30 pm, Fraser River Presentation Theatre, Township Civic Facility, 20338 65 Avenue
- Official record
- Minutes (PDF) · Agenda and staff reports (PDF)
Some of the most consequential Township decisions don’t make headlines because the names are dull. This meeting had one of those: the 2026 update to the Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw.
The servicing bylaw update
The Subdivision and Development Servicing Bylaw sets the standards developers must build to: roads, sidewalks, water, sewer and storm drainage. Its update (Bylaw 6211, with fees in Bylaw 6225 and a revised pavement cuts policy) came to council for three readings. A motion from Councillor Martens to refer it to staff for public consultation first was defeated, so the update carried on to final adoption on July 27.
The minutes record the votes but not the debate; the discussion is on the meeting video linked from the Township’s meeting page. What isn’t in dispute is why it matters: these standards feed directly into what new subdivisions cost to build and what new streets look like.
Fraser Highway, 234 to 264 Street
The staff recommendation in front of council was to apply to the federal Trade Diversification Corridors Fund for $88.9 million in cost-sharing to finish Fraser Highway from the 23400 block to the 26400 block, including the 268 Street intersection.
Residents at the microphone
- Truck parking on farmland: a resident raised the number of commercial trucks parked on Agricultural Land Reserve properties. Council asked staff for a preliminary report for July 27, which came back as an information memo.
- Tree bylaw penalties: a resident asked council to waive penalties for a tree protection bylaw infraction. Council referred it to staff to report back; Councillor Baillie was opposed.
- A no-build covenant: a request to have staff look at a no-build covenant on a property was defeated.
- Flood resilience: the Lower Fraser Floodplains Coalition asked the Township to endorse its joint statement calling on Ottawa and Victoria for a long-term flood resilience program for the Lower Fraser. Langley City signed the same statement that evening (City July 13 recap).
Smaller rules with daily effects
- Loading and accessible parking: Zoning Bylaw 6235, changing off-street loading space and accessible parking requirements, got all readings and final adoption. Staff were also directed to consult the public, accessibility groups and businesses on on-street accessible parking.
- Green building rebates: council directed staff to increase rebate amounts and widen eligibility in the Green Building Permit Rebate Program; the fee bylaws were adopted July 27.
- Seniors: council approved an application to the federal New Horizons for Seniors Program for $44,000 for a Seniors Come Together project.
- Final readings: road closure bylaws for 209A Street and the Horne Pit, and an amendment to the permissive tax exemption bylaw.
Notices of motion
Councillors brought forward motions on traffic calming on 201 Street (80 to 82 Avenue) and 197 Street (76 to 80 Avenue), on veteran-themed crosswalks, and on farm drainage and ditch maintenance and farm traffic on rural roads under the Agricultural Viability Strategy.
More background: Who pays for growth: DCCs and ACCs · How development gets approved