The City of South Bruce Peninsula says it continues to navigate the complexities of the Ontario Court docket of Enchantment’s current resolution relating to the Sauble Seashore Land Declare. The 121-page ruling touches on vital points, together with the delineation of the Reserve’s jap boundary, which has implications for Lakeshore Boulevard North and close by properties.
The Court docket clarified that lands east of the sandy seaside don’t kind a part of the Saugeen First Nation Reserve, an final result the City views as a constructive growth. This dedication means that properties alongside and east of Lakeshore Boulevard North might stay beneath South Bruce Peninsula jurisdiction. Nevertheless, the precise boundaries of the Reserve will solely be verified following a authorized survey, which is anticipated to be carried out within the spring or summer season of 2025. Regardless of this optimism, the Saugeen First Nation has not agreed to limit its land declare to areas west of the boulevard.
In response to the unresolved boundary points, the City has confirmed its intention to hunt go away to attraction to the Supreme Court docket of Canada earlier than the deadline of February 7, 2025. Mayor Jay Kirkland emphasised the significance of preserving the City’s authorized rights.
“If we drop our attraction and the survey outcomes differ from the Court docket’s description, we might don’t have any alternative however to begin contemporary authorized proceedings,” he stated.
Including reassurance to the City’s resolution, its authorized counsel has dedicated to overlaying all prices of the attraction course of if the Supreme Court docket rejects the case.
This growth follows the Ontario Court docket of Enchantment’s December 2024 ruling, which upheld the Saugeen First Nation’s possession of a two-kilometre stretch of Sauble Seashore from Major Road to sixth Road North.
Trying forward, the City has expressed a willingness to interact in discussions with Saugeen First Nation to deal with mutual considerations, together with seaside drainage upkeep, long-term public entry, and operational partnerships. Nevertheless, the authorized proceedings are removed from over. Part Two of the land declare trial, specializing in compensation for affected events, just isn’t anticipated to conclude till 2026.
