Granville Island attracts millions of visitors annually to its restaurants, market, boutiques and arts venues
The federal government is in talks about Indigenous groups having a greater presence on Granville Island and a greater say over how it is run.
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Exploratory discussions started with federal officials after inquiries from the Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations, said Tom Lancaster, who manages the federally owned site for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.
“In the spirit of reconciliation, the CMHC, Canada Lands Company and the MST Nations have initiated preliminary discussions about the potential to increase the presence and involvement of the MST Nations on Granville Island,” Lancaster said in an email. “It is anticipated that these discussions will take place over the coming years.”
Pressed on whether this may lead to changes in the control or management of real estate, roughly the size of 14 city blocks, Lancaster said by phone that he didn’t want to prejudice the conversations, and that “it could go probably anywhere, or it could go absolutely nowhere.”
Representatives for the First Nations and the Canada Lands Company referred requests to comment to CMHC.
Granville Island attracts millions of visitors annually to its restaurants, market, boutiques and arts venues. It also a hotel. It’s also has berths for boat owners and whale-watching trips.
The area was first used by Indigenous people before the modern landmass was filled in on the site of a sandbar in 1916 as logging and industry developed, and it’s been owned and operated by the federal government since the 1970s. It was an industrial complex before that, particularly during the Second World War.
The First Nations have areas of shared traditional territory and work on some projects as a partnership. Their joint company to manage mutual business interests, MST Development Corp., isn’t currently involved in the Granville Island discussion, Lancaster said.
The federal government has already worked with the MST Nations.
Looking to gain economically from the desirable Vancouver real estate market, MST’s development company is now planning to build more than 15,000 housing units on nearby sites called Jericho Lands and Heather Lands, after partnering with the Canada Lands Company.
Lancaster said those sites were categorized as so-called surplus lands in the government catalog, and Granville Island isn’t.