Prince George ready to convert part of downtown into reserve land

The City of Prince George is supporting a proposal to convert part of its downtown core to urban reserve land owned by the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation.

On Wednesday evening, council voted 7-1 to draft a letter of support for the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation’s proposal to Indigenous Services Canada.

If the bid is successful, two locations will become reserve lands: the Nation Administration office on Brunswick Street and Uda Dune Baiyoh, or the conference center and parking lot of the Maison des Ancêtres on Vancouver Street. , as well as the adjacent parking lot, covering a total area. of 6,150 square meters.

This would make Prince George — located about 500 kilometers north of Vancouver — the latest in a series of more than 120 municipalities across Canada, including Winnipeg, Saskatoon and Fort St. John, to adopt the concept of urban reserves as way to get around. move forward in their relationships with local First Nations.

The greater Prince George area is home to approximately 90,000 people, of whom approximately 13,000 identify as Indigenous.

In total, 6,150 square meters of land covering two buildings and a parking lot would be converted to reserve land if the proposal goes ahead. (Natural Resources Canada)

The majority of council members spoke enthusiastically in favor of the project, describing it as a win-win solution for the town and the First Nation.

“We are talking about reconciliation,” the Council said. Garth Frizzell. “This is where we make a decision…it’s just a no-brainer.”

“We are fortunate to be partners with the Lheidli T’enneh,” said Coun. Brian Skakun. “I look forward to working with them on this.”

The only councilor to vote against the motion in favor of the proposal was Kyle Sampson, who said he was not opposed to the idea in principle, but wanted more time to meet with council leaders. Lheidli T’enneh to inquire about logistics and whether the First Nation intended to request more properties be converted to reserve land in the future.

“I like to know all the information when I make decisions,” he said.

Advice. Cori Ramsay said that at recent local government meetings she has heard Fort St. John leaders speak “very positively” about their own process of converting municipal land to reserve land, while emphasizing that work should be done to understand the logistics of moving the project forward.

Lheidli T’enneh Chief and Council were not available for comment on the decision.

How urban reserves work

In January 2022, the Lheidli T’enneh flag was permanently raised in front of Prince George City Hall to recognize the city’s relationship with the First Nation. From left, Chief Lheidli T’enneh Dolleen Logan, Elder Darlene McIntosh, Councilor. Crystal Gibbs, advisor. Joshua Seymour and Lyn Hall, now former mayor of Prince George, hold the new First Nation flag before it is raised at full mast during a ceremony at city hall on January 4, 2022. (Submitted by the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation)

We speak of an urban reserve when land located within or near a municipality is converted into reserve land, as recognized by the federal Crown.

Historically, reserves were placed outside of urban centers, in remote and rural areas.

In the case of the Lheidli T’enneh, reserve land was created several kilometers from what is now Prince George after the village site near what is now the town center was burned and that its members were forcibly evicted in 1913 to make way for the city and the railroad.

However, members continue to work and live in the city itself. In recent years, the First Nation has established a greater presence by purchasing a former theater, which has been converted into the Uda Dune Baiyoh conference center and meeting space and is being considered for conversion to reserve land.

Like reserves in more remote areas, First Nations are exempt from paying taxes on certain items and often do not have to pay income tax on money earned on urban reserve lands. However, they pay for services such as water, garbage collection, police and fire protection through contracts negotiated with the municipality where they are located.

According to a staff report, the estimated loss in property taxes if the land is converted would be $114,046.51 in 2024 values.

In a letter to the City of Prince George, Kuldip Gill of Indigenous Services Canada said that when the federal government receives a request from a First Nation to add land to the reserve, it encourages local governments and the province to work with the First Nation using a “good neighborly approach when negotiating how the costs of services provided by the city on reserve lands will be paid.”

“By working together, we can advance our collective work in the spirit of reconciliation and nation-to-nation relationships.”

In the past, the processes of converting new land into reserves took more than two years.