Langford considers ending artificial turf program on city boulevards
Langford city council will soon vote on whether to keep installing artificial turf along city boulevards, or go back to using sod.
Some think installing artificial turf along several of Langford’s boulevards was a brilliant idea.
"I think it’s the greatest thing ever invented for boulevards," said resident John Meredith.
Joan Traversy also thinks it looks good.
"I think it looks better than dead grass in the middle of summer," said Traversy.
But others believe it looks a bit tacky.
"It just looks fake," said Dylan Ringma. "You can tell it’s turf."
"Just grow grass," said local Arten Hryvtsov.
In 2017, Langford began laying down turf along some of its boulevards "with the idea that it would save the city and developers money," said Scott Goodmanson, the mayor of Langford.
According to a new Langford staff report, since the city began using the artificial grass, that has not been the case.
"It’s possibly going to cost much more because it eventually wears out and it has to be completely replaced," said Goodmanson.
The maintenance of the turf has turned out to be much more expensive than expected.
"There’s lots of areas that you can see garbage buildup, you can see weeds poking through, and repairs aren’t cheap," said the mayor.
The City of Langford incentivized the turf pilot project, paying 65 per cent of costs to install them, leaving developers to pay the remaining 35 per cent.
Costs for turf has now increased by 64 per cent since the program started.
The study shows the anticipated savings have not been met, and that turf is bad for the environment.
Langford council will vote on Monday night to either continue to install the turf going forward, or go back to sod.
Either way, what isn’t on the table is what to do with the turf that has already been installed.
"If we reverted back to sod, this is step one, and we’ll worry about step two at that point further down the road," said Goodmanson.
Artificial turf is pictured along Constellation Avenue in Langford, B.C. (CTV News)
Feelings are mixed from Langford residents.
"Oh I hope not," said Meredith. "I hope they continue with the project."
"I think that the actual grass looks nicer and it just looks better," said resident Savannah Stone.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.