It has become something of a tradition for the Langley Advance newsroom to identify and present the issue that we feel generated the community’s most – or most significant – news over the past year.
“Big†news is not necessarily a quantitative assessment, nor is it strictly qualitative. We admit that our selection is subjective, and in fact, there has sometimes been considerable disagreement among readers over whether or not our annual choices have been valid.
Some years our choice of Newsmaker of the Year has been easy, such as the year that the gangland-style shootings and killings swept through Langley, or the year that the Langley Events Centre became a reality – proof that it’s not always bad news, or always good news that strikes the major chord.
Some years it’s been difficult to single out an issue, either because more than one stood out that year, or because nothing really stood out at all.
This has been one of those years in which there were a lot of important things happening.
The education labour dispute, for instance, put former Langley City mayor Peter Fassbender front and centre as Minister of Education – but we felt that was more of a regional/provincial issue than one directly affecting only Langley.
Development issues throughout Langley Township brought growth into sharp focus – but we felt that focus somehow kept shifting towards the dispute that arose over the proposed – and failed – Brookswood Official Community Plan.
Not only did the OCP rile the usually politically placid residents of Brookswood, but it seemed everyone with an axe to grind over growth in the Township found company in their discontent.
This is not meant to be a definitive selection, so much as a thought-provoking exercise to help remind our readers of some of the important people and events that help shape the community.
So if you disagree with us this year, that is entirely valid. It just means we’ve got you thinking. And that’s what it’s about.
– B.G.
