NEW BYLAW WILL PENALIZE OWNERS OF GROW-OP HOMES

With its new bylaw, Langley Township Council is sending a clear message to
landowners: be aware of what your tenant is doing.

At its April 7 meeting, council approved a bylaw stating that all buildings
which have sustained damage from illicit drug operations will have to be
repaired to building code standards before they can be occupied again.

The cost for landowners is significant. The fee schedule is $525 for the
initial investigation and inspection of a property, $250 for the first
building inspection, $100 per agency carrying out an inspection, and $250
for a letter authorizing re-occupancy.

But Mayor Kurt Alberts said the real cost is getting the building back to a
habitable state.

"You could be faced with tens of thousands of dollars with bringing it back
to compliance," he said in an interview on Tuesday. "So be aware of what
your tenants are doing, in other words."

The bylaw is similar to one adopted by the City last year. However, while
the City's bylaw is restricted to residential properties, the Township's
covers all classes of buildings.

The bylaw was introduced on March 17, one week after council heard graphic
testimony from a Langley RCMP Drug Squad member about the extent of illegal
marijuana grow-ops in the municipality. They number in the thousands,
council was told. Police made 60 drug busts in the Township last year.

The new legislation will be activated when local police notify the
Township's building inspection department of any illegal activity that
damages a building.

Although pot is the favoured illegal drug for growers, psilocybin (magic
mushrooms) and methamphetamine labs are not uncommon. Premises cannot be
re-occupied until a building inspector rules that they are habitable after
an evaluation that includes the fire department, and inspectors for utilities.