Langley Equestrians Nip Riding Ban in the Bud

A group of equestrians and horseback riding enthusiasts pushed back a proposed new bylaw in Langley, BC, that would have banned horses on all public roads. According to the news outlet Langley Advance Times, the person who spearheaded opposition to the ban was sharp-eyed Gloria Stelting, a local citizen who happened to carefully read the 400-page agenda that was put forward to Langley’s city council.

The new bylaw was set to prohibit horses, other than those used by police, in all public spaces and on township roads. “I actually read the agendas and that’s the only way you’re going to see these things,” Stelting told the Times.

For reasons that weren’t explained, the new bylaw wasn’t highlighted in the agenda, something that Stelting and a group of other horse enthusiasts wanted to know when they turned up at the council meeting on March 24. At the meeting, the town’s mayor Eric Woodward said he’d heard from concerned constituents over the weekend who’d read about the proposed ban on social media.

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“I think we’re all aware that there was quite a bit of communication over the weekend and concern regarding a paragraph that was proposed to be added to the public spaces regulation bylaw specific to additional regulation for horses and not other animals,” he is reported to have said at the meeting.

As a result, Woodward made a motion which was seconded by Councillor Tim Baillie to have the proposed change abolished.

But the issue of how the proposed horse ban got included and hidden remains a mystery and a concern. “How did it get to the councillors without going through any input? With no thoughts? It’s the most ill-conceived, badly written massive amendment and yet it was just going to be pushed through,” said Annabel Young, a local horsewoman who posted about the issue on Facebook. “It’s very draconian.”

While there had apparently been some minor complaints about manure on the roads, “This paragraph regarding horses specifically was inserted into the bylaw amendment without explanation to council,” added Mayor Woodward. And so far, no one has come forward to accept responsibility.

Earlier this year in Burnaby, BC, local horse owners and riders were battling it out with city council who wanted to pave over riding trails to make the pathways more easily traversed for bicycle commuters. At least for riders in Langley, the BC war on the horse has lost one major battle.