British Columbia is planning major changes to its heritage protection laws that critics say may have drastic consequences for property owners in the province.
The overhaul of the Heritage Conservation Act follows the upheaval caused by a B.C. Supreme Court ruling last year that affirmed Indigenous title for the Cowichan Tribes over three square kilometres of land in Richmond, B.C. The ruling triggered financing issues for landowners and set a legal precedent that could have wider implications for private property rights. Also, in December, the B.C. Court of Appeal ruled that the province’s adoption of the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA) is legally enforceable, including matters concerning resource development.
The lesser-known change under way, which will apply to every property owner in the province, is the province’s rewriting of the Heritage Conservation Act (HCA), which it intends to align with DRIPA. The proposed changes have received considerable blowback from local governments, real estate developers and others. The province has extended the consultation phase and will use the feedback to introduce revised legislation likely this year, according to spokesperson Andy Watson, who’s with the Ministry of Forests, which oversees the HCA.
The HCA has long protected culturally significant Indigenous sites affected by redevelopment. But the amendments aim to broaden the definition of sites to include those that have spiritual or ceremonial value, or other intangibles. Critics worry that owners won’t know their property has been flagged as culturally important until they apply for a permit. Such a designation could make property owners vulnerable to additional expense and delay. “If you read what they’re proposing, it’s going to make things a lot worse,” says Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West. “Right now, the necessity of having a heritage permit is fairly narrow. … It connects to maps that identify where there could be a higher probability of an archeological find. In Port Coquitlam, our entire community is mapped.
Read the full article online: B.C.’s plans to update heritage protections could majorly affect property owners – The Globe and Mail
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