Two Metro Vancouver municipalities are reassuring homeowners and businesses that they will maintain ownership over their property in the face of an Indigenous land claim.
The title claim, filed by the Kwikwetlem First Nation in 2016, includes land in Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam.
“In the context of the decision in Richmond and Cowichan, the city was receiving a large number of inquiries from people about, ‘Hey, what’s happening there and is my property impacted?’” Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West told Global News.
The land in question covers several publicly-owned parcels in Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam, including the Riverview lands and the Colony Farm Psychiatric Hospital site.
However, unlike the Cowichan case in Richmond, Kwikwetlem’s claim only involved public land.
“It brought no claims about private properties, mainly because it felt private parties don’t owe the same obligations that governments do to First Nations,” Robert Janes, the Kwikwetlem First Nation title claim lawyer, said.
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The federal and provincial governments are appealing the B.C. Supreme Court’s ruling in favour of the Quw’utsun Nation, or Cowichan Nation, that found it had “established Aboriginal title” to more than 5.7 square kilometres of land on the Fraser River in Richmond, south of Vancouver.
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The City of Richmond has also joined the appeal.
The ruling declared Crown and city titles on the land are “defective and invalid,” and the granting of private titles on it by the government unjustifiably infringed on the Cowichan title.
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In the case of the Kwikwetlem First Nation, it says it continues to place great importance on retaining an intimate and spiritual connection to its territory.
The trial was set for 2021, but the case was put into abeyance, meaning it is on hold as the parties try to negotiate a deal.
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“We don’t want these things to show up in court and I think we’ve seen with the Cowichan decision, it’s much better if you’re sitting with the Nation and discussing it, so it’s actually a good thing that this is abeyance,” Niki Sharma, B.C.’s Attorney General, said.
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BC Conservative Leader John Rustad said this is yet another example of how B.C. Premier David Eby wants to negotiate away private property rights without informing private property owners.
“That’s a scary thing because all across the province, that is what people are worried about,” Rustad said.
“What is this government doing in negotiations and when are they going to inform people just what their perspective is on whether titles should be overriding their private property rights?”
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In a statement, the Kwikwetlem First Nation said it would like to reassure all residents that they are not seeking privately-owned homes or private residential property.
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“Kwikwetlem is a very small First Nation, and paying lawyers and fighting long court cases is not its priority,” Janes said.
West is hoping for an outcome that works for everyone.
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