The City of Langford is creating a new six-acre park in its downtown core, but it will come with the eviction of dozens of people from a long-running trailer park.
The city agreed in December to buy the Woodlands Park property for $9.8 million, more than $8 million less than its assessed value. The owners, who are retiring, will receive an $8.325-million donation credit to make up for the difference.
Residents of the park are being given five years to stay, at which point the city says it will buy their manufactured homes for their assessed value, plus 10 per cent. Residents who want to leave earlier will receive the same offer.
John Davies, who lives in one of 40 manufactured homes on the property, said the sale wasn’t a surprise.
He believes the city’s offer is “fairly reasonable,” but said many of his neighbours expressed “a fair amount of stress” at a meeting Thursday night.
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“A developer I am not sure would have given us what we’re getting from the city,” he said.
“There are some people in here who are just managing to get by right now, and if you’ve got to move and go into something that’s a little bit more costly, it could be a problem.”
The city says the plan goes over and above the requirements of B.C.’s Manufactured Home Park Tenancy Act.
“This once-in-a-generation initiative will transform Langford’s downtown by adding much-needed greenspace, trails and gardens while preserving the biodiversity and mature tree canopy for residents to enjoy,” Langford Mayor Scott Goodmanson said in a media release.
Langford Coun. Colby Harder praised the property’s owners for agreeing to sell to the city at below-market value.
“It’s been a long-term vision of theirs to ensure that this park remains protected and eventually turn into a public park for the enjoyment of all, so that really is reflected in the purchase price as their legacy and their vision,” she said.
The city says the property includes mature trees, botanical flower beds and “tranquil winding pathways.”
Harder said the city hopes to build a “beautiful green oasis” and the Victoria suburb’s answer to one of the world’s most famous urban parks.
“I’ve compared it to the visual of New York’s Central Park,” she said. “Imagine New York without Central Park.”
Harder said the city will spend the next five years working with residents to ensure they are treated with dignity and respect.
“Any time a private landowner decides to sell, there’s always the uncertainty that is presented to the existing tenants,” Harder said.
“So while we don’t have a crystal ball to project where they will end up, our hope is that we will be able to support them with whatever decision they choose to make.”
Davies, who has lived in Langford since 1968, said he hasn’t decided what to do next.
He said finding somewhere to move the mobile home would be both expensive and challenging.
“It means finding a new place to live in the next five years,” he said. “But you never know, at my age I could be in a home by then.”
The city is funding $7 million of the purchase through the provincial Growing Communities Fund grant it received in 2023, and will budget $1 million per year between 2025 and 2029 for tenant support. The remaining cost of the purchase will come through a property tax hike of about 1.75 per cent in 2029.