‘ H ! 1 i I 1 i I i ' ' 1 ‘ ( t 1 roman ee renacicc ake eee inti. ors ? betsy « DHE Anbleside uncertain alter talks tween PURE of Park remains five omenths broke off he- Squamish Tn- the din bund and Wese Vaun- couver municipality. The hand aad the distriel have been rental reach oa for the tunable to dlereement 26 weres, os & ’ sae NEWS photo Torry Peters CHICKEN BREAST 2° BONED & SKINNED FREE!! NATIVES, WEST VAN WRANGLE OVER DISPUTED LAND |BABY PORK Ambleside future uncertain AMBLESIDE was going to be a park ‘‘equalling that of Stanley Park,’ uniting West Vancouver and the Squamish Indian Band. Supporters of the joint venture believed a regional, waterfront park would help restore West Vancouver's original seaside char- acter, and improve the appearance of the North Shore’s harbor en- trance. In a 1971 municipal report, the suggestion was made that Ambleside Park should be extend- ed to include Indian reserve land on the east side of Capilano River. Mayor Derrick Humphreys, then an alderman, said he was assured by Chief Simon Paker that coop- eration between natives and non- natives was possible and a park could be establish d. . = Squamish Band Capilano Reserve . = Cut-off land . = 26 acres of Ambleside Park But formal negotiations never began. in 1986 a waterfront park ven- ture of this magnitude seems remote. interviewed recently at his of- fice. Humphreys pointed to a rough, hand-carved gavel lying on his desk. He said it was a gift by Chief Baker when Humphreys assumed his office, and is in- dicative of the good relations that existed between the two sides at the time. Humphreys isn’t interested in discussing the climate that exists today between West Vancouver and its native neighbors. And he tefused to comment on the reason why he believes the proposed park, which he likened to Stanley Park, failed. Chief Philip Joe. of the Squamish Indian band, said the regional park was never a possibil- By KIM PE ity. He said the band, since 1968, was negotiating with the provincial and federal governinents to see the return of 130 acres of land that had been illegally cut-off from its reserve in 1924, “Land has been the backbone of our culture,”’ he said. “There's not much of it left so we wanted it back. It was enlightening on our part that we finally convinced them it was ours and should be returned."’ Part of the cut-off land, return- ed to the Squamish Band in 1983 by the federal government, in- volves 26 acres of Ambleside Park. He said West Vancouver con- tinues to use the land, but has yet to pay a rental fee to the Squamish band. In the past, the land, which in- cludes the Pitch and Putt field, was leased by West Vancouver from the provincial government for $3,600 a year. But the Squamish band wants to charge a yearly fee of $50,000. West Vancouver’s last offer was for half that amount. Negotiations between the two sides broke off in March, and nei- ther side seems willing to budge. Instead, the Squamish banc hints that the land could be commer- cially developed. “Personally { think West Van- couver wants the land for cheap, but we're not the provincial gov- ernment -— we can't afford to sub- sidize them,”' said Joe. “These lands are iniportint pieces of real estate. We've thought about it as a park for now, but whatever comes will come. Why shouldn't we be like any other private entrepreneur with a. piece of prime waterfront land?”" A 1973 Squamish band report, done in cooperation with the Department of Indian Affairs, recommended a hotel and marina be built on part of the Indian's Ambleside property. Neither project fruition. Humphreys said West) Van- couver continues “to cut the grass’’ on band-owned Ambleside property and will continue to maintain the area, He noted the ci- ty has invested $500,000 in development costs regarding these lands. Interviewed last’ March, Chief Joe Mathias, who is currendy in Ottawa, said West Vancouver’s decision to invest money in the park is not the band's responsibili- ty. , “Wei wrote a fetter advising (West Vancouver) that they're spending funds on lands they have no legal interest in,’ he said. “dt’s dike the city of West Van- couver planning a park for North Vancouver,” Humphreys said as far as West Vancouver is concerned the ‘ball is ip the band’s court.”’ “Now what happens on Indian lands will have an effect on the rest of West) Vancouver, understan- dably,"' said Humphreys. “ft don’t know if thes have a problem — we've said our piece and we want them to respond.”* Joe said as the landlord of the property, the band doesn't have to be in the position of actively soliciting West Vancouver to rent the property. **Patience is a virtue,”* he said. When asked why a poor climate exists between the band and West Vancouver, Joe summed it up by saying, ‘‘Ever since contact, there have been problems with respect to non-Indian encroachment on In- dian lands." Humphreys still believes West Vancouver needs more access to the waterfront, but he no longer includes Capilano when talking of developing a park. Instead, he’s actively working for the recovery of Ambleside property that remains, not under Indian jurisdiction, but in private hands west of the Pitch and Putt field. “We're a waterfront oriented community, but when you look at that coastline you realize there’s has come to not a lor of places for people to paddle, Right now we only have Ambleside Park, Whytecliff Park - and Lighthouse Park," he said. Ambleside is the only park with sandy beach front. Although the idea of giving res- idents direct access'to the water- front had been discussed for more than 50 years, it wasn’t until 1976 that council took steps to acquire private property for parkland, Construction on the project, referred to as Ambleside by the Sea, could begin as carly as September if council approves its planning department's third study on the subject. The expected completion date for Ambleside by the Sea is in 20 years time. Under Humphreys’ leadership, ° § the district has spent about $3 mil- lion to acquire Ambleside water- front property formerly in private hands. Another $3 million is the estimated cost still to be spent to buy the remaining private lots on Ambleside. Fifteen properties have been bought, at an average cost of $350,000 each, and another [8 are suill to be acquired. Although no wwreement can now be reached on selling Indian lands to West Vancouver, former West Vancouver-Howe Sound MLA Allan Williams said during negotiations that led up to the return of the cut-off land in 983 See Ambieside Page 13 Thurs., Aug. 21 7:15 P Teak coffee table set, new sofa, loveseat & hide-a-bed, 3 hp roto tiller, complete data- point dual disk drive computer system, 8 pce. dining room suite, 5 pce brass & glass dinette, dishwasher, ap- pliances, aluminum doors, pictures, lamps & much more BACK RIBS $989 | Bar-B-Que _ GRADE “A” 1 BEEF 2 Ib. CUT, WRAPPED, FROZEN & GUARANTEED ‘Aug. 20-Aug. 30) MAPLE LEAF Sliced SIDE BACON $499 Ib. CORDON (FOR 12 PIECES) MIX AND MATCH MANY VARIETIES (REG. $34-$38 PER 12)