On a quaint street in a town that loves its history, a cotton candy-coloured house is sickening for some, but sweet to others.
The boarded up home near Mary Avenue and Glover Road in Fort Langley used to be white, but received a dramatic makeover last week following a dispute between a developer and the township.
In addition to the bright pink walls, the owner added several plastic flamingos to drive home his point.
The man behind the colourful protest is Eric Woodward, a developer who bought the home 12 years ago with the goal of replacing it with a three-storey mixed-use building. Woodward's plan was to create a development including retail, residences and a boutique hotel.
He applied for the permits, but says the local government is charging him thousands of dollars for permits and tree protection. They're also refusing to let him demolish the aging house and other buildings on the lot.
"I don't understand why we face these roadblocks," Woodward told CTV News on Thursday.
Hence his protest: "We're not trying to play games or be silly. We're trying to highlight that at the moment, the bureaucracy of the Township of Langley is really a bit out of control."
The mayor of the township said all developers must meet certain requirements, but that overall he likes the project and thinks it will move forward.
But the matter hasn't gone to council yet, and residents who spoke to CTV were split.
Some said they thought the hotel would be successful, but another said they felt a three-story modern building wouldn't fit in in a heritage village.
With a report from CTV Vancouver's Breanna Karstens-Smith
