VANCOUVER - The Squamish Nation will move ahead with plans to build condominium units on reserve land on the North Shore after a bill received royal assent Wednesday in Ottawa.
Bill C-24 amends the First Nations Commercial and Industrial Development Act to allow first nations the right to develop commercial real estate on reserves.
The bill was passed with unanimous support.
First nations will be able to gain investor confidence because members can apply for land titles and the title assurance fund through the same process as non-reserve land.
First nations can now compete for investment on a level playing field, said Squamish Nation Chief Gibby Jacob.
The chief said the amendment means the Squamish Nation can go ahead with plans to build four housing towers on 74,000 square metres of land near the Park Royal shopping mall in West Vancouver.
“Before, we did not have the ability to do that. This bill enables us to get things done. [The developers] weren’t going to spend cash on it until after the legislation,” Jacob said.
“We still have a long way to go. This is just the first step.”
The land is not be subject to municipal zoning regulations because it is first nations land.
The Squamish Nation also plans to build a housing development on 3.2 hectares of the band’s traditional land under the south end of the Burrard Bridge, adjacent to the Molson Brewery on Burrard Street.
Jacob did not say when the residential/commercial development will begin, but said the legislation will allow them to compete for investment.
Members have not yet determined whether the Squamish Nation will be an investor in the development or sell the lease rights.
“It allows us to bring on the strata title, if that is what we choose,” Jacob said.
“We still have to go back to our people and they have the ultimate say in whether it goes or not.”
The B.C. Court of Appeal returned the land to the Squamish Nation in 2002 following a lawsuit against Canadian Pacific when it tried to sell the land in the 1980s. The province had granted the rail company the land in 1886 and 1902.
Jacob noted that of the 36,000 members of the Squamish First Nation, 60 per cent are under the age of 25.
“We have 1,000 people waiting on the list for housing, so if we don’t generate new revenue they may never get a home. We have single people and homeless people and we need to think about them, too.”
Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl said first nations will now be able to enjoy the same opportunities as other Canadians.
“These new amendments close an important regulatory gap that has so far hampered the development of large commercial real estate projects on reserve land,” Strahl said in a statement.