Organizers of the annual Christmas in Williams Park display were caught off guard by a Township of Langley letter informing them the municipality will no long be supporting the event.
That’s according to Barb Sharp, president of the non-profit Christmas in Williams Park Society, who revealed the letter landed in mid-September.
On Monday, Sharp warned the short notice may mean the event, planned for Dec. 1-20, will have to be cancelled.
“We had no idea this was coming,” Sharp commented.
Because the Township has taken over the setup and takedown of the displays, the society faces a “next to impossible” challenge, Sharp commented.
“They’ve [the Township] been handling it all for the past four or five years.”
Sharp said society members would have to find volunteers to handle the installations at the last minute.
Sharp provided the Langley Advance Times with a copy of the letter, dated Sept. 11, from Tab Buckner, Township manager of parks operations.
“We write to inform you that Township of Langley staff are no longer able to provide support with the setup and take down of the holiday light display in Williams Park,” Buckner advised, adding “we thank you for your efforts and collaboration to deliver this event in the past and apologize for any inconvenience or impact this may have on your event moving forward.”
No reason was given for the decision, though Sharp suspects it might be a cost-cutting measure.
“All we got [in the letter] was they weren’t going to support it.”
She also pointed to a reference in a Township “events inventory” list about a proposed new holiday “light walk” this December, with the location“to be decided.”
Sharp said the Township has approached at least one other group to run a similar event to theirs.
“I spoke directly with one executive director from a local not-for-profit who told me they had been contacted,” Sharp reported.
“If the dollars are the real issue, why would you try to create a new event that will cost money?”
Sharp will appear as a delegation before the 1:30 p.m. Monday, Oct 23, meeting of Township council to plead their case.
The Society is asking supporters to attend the presentation at the Township civic facility at 20338 65th Ave., “which will be asking for the ongoing support from the Township to ensure we have Christmas in Williams Park this year.”
Supporters are also being asked to email the mayor and council members, or to sign an online petition at the Society Facebook page at www.facebook.com/christmasinwilliamspark.
Christmas in Williams Park has been running for more than 30 years at the 238th Street and 68th Avenue location.
In response to a Langley Advance Times query, the Township released an unsigned statement Monday afternoon that said the event costs the municipality $55,000, which comes from the existing parks operations budget, and citing complaints by residents while saying the event would be allowed to continue.
“Given the demands on the Parks Operations budget, the historical complaints from residents on 238 street due to the significant increase in vehicular traffic associated with the Williams Park event, along with the environmental impacts of idling cars, staff are proposing a new walkable event to be held at a more centralized, accessible location in the Township for more people to enjoy,” the statement said.
“All decorations used for the Christmas in Williams Park event are owned by the Christmas in Williams Park Society and the Society may continue to operate their event at Williams Park if they choose to.”
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