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Langley City Mayor Peter Fassbender admitted it looks unlikely the TransLink Mayors’ Council will pass a proposed property tax increase.
Fassbender, who chairs TransLink’s Mayors’ Council pitched the idea of the tax to the Greater Langley Chamber of Commerce Tuesday night, as part of a presentation with TransLink CEO Ian Jarvis.
The Moving Forward plan includes money to finish the long-delayed Evergreen Line rail project, as well as to expand bus service around the region, including in Langley and Surrey.
The transit authority hopes that the province can be convinced to fund much of the expansion in service. But Fassbender said the property tax must be approved in principal as a “backstop” measure. If approved, it would take effect in 2012 and would cost $8.91 per $100,000 of a home’s value.
However, many mayors around the region have expressed doubts about the tax or have outright refused to vote for it. To date, Langley Township Mayor Rick Green, along with mayors from Surrey, Delta, Vancouver, Burnaby, and the North Shore all seem to be falling on the “no” side.
Without the tax in place, Fassbender said the province will finish the Evergreen Line one way or another, but TransLink won’t be at the table.
The situation could end up in another stand off over funding between TransLink and the province, he said.
“We need to develop a new climate of trust,” he said.
Fassbender encouraged chamber members to hold politicians’ feet to the fire, to force them to find a long-term funding solution.
Jarvis continued a recent trend among TransLink officials, admitting that the cities south of the Fraser River had been poorly served when it comes to transit.
“We know that there’s an underinvestment in transit and transportation,” Jarvis said.
He said TransLink has been getting its house in order, eliminated 100 administrative positions in recent years, and has become one of the most cost-efficient transit organizations in the world.
He noted that savings will be used to fund the first year of transit expansions. If the Moving Forward plan can be funded, almost half of the increase in bus service would be in the South of the Fraser region.
By 2015, TransLink believes it could reduce per capita vehicle kilometres travelled, reversing a long-term trend.
The TransLink Mayors Council will vote on the tax plan on Dec. 9. Regardless of the vote, they have recently signed a memorandum of understanding with the province to look at alternative funding sources.
Matthew Claxton | mclaxton@langleyadvance.com | – Langley Advance -
