Helping Out the Poor Developers
Millionaire developer Steve Charest of King and Benton wants the poor overtaxed residents of Brantford to dig deeper into their pockets to help developers make even more profits.He wants the City of Brantford to pay part of the property taxes collected on new developments to the Haudenosunee/Six Nations.
City taxes are supposed to pay for services provided by the city not to facilitate development or stop illegal protests. If a portion of these taxes are given to this groups what services are they going to provide in return? Apparently this groups might not stop Mr. Charest and his group from doing their developments and thus making millions in profits. Of course their is no guarantee that other groups like the Mohawk Nation won't take up the cause and thwart these plans anyway. And who picks up the tab for those services that this tax money was intended to pay for. Why all of the taxpayers in the City of Brantford, of course.
And once these land claims are settled the monies paid are supposed to be returned. Does that really make sense? And even if that happened it could be far in the future when current taxpayer are long gone and won't benefit from this bizarre scheme.
Land claims are just that - claims that are not yet substantiated by fact. The Natives can claim that the land is theirs but there are also documents to show that the land was sold, given away or surrendered. There is also the fact that the original Haldimand proclamation might not even be valid. And complicating things is the fact that there are a number of groups including the Haudenosunee Institute, the Confederacy, the Elected Band Council, the Mohawk Nation and the Montours and their supporters all claiming to represent the Natives. A deadline to solve these claims will do nothing if one or both sides can't agree.
Development in Brantford is necessary and must proceed, but adding a new onerous burden onto already some of the highest taxed people in Ontario is not the way to go. Many, especially seniors and those on fixed incomes, faced with the rising cost of gas and other necessities, are finding it hard to make ends meet. Driving up property taxes to benefit developers will just cause more suffering and many may simply choose to leave Brantford altogether for areas where the property taxes are much lower. How will this benefit the community?
If Charest thinks that paying money to the Natives is the solution, then let him and his group of developers make the payments out of their profits. After all the money might be returned to them. Someday.
City taxes are supposed to pay for services provided by the city not to facilitate development or stop illegal protests. If a portion of these taxes are given to this groups what services are they going to provide in return? Apparently this groups might not stop Mr. Charest and his group from doing their developments and thus making millions in profits. Of course their is no guarantee that other groups like the Mohawk Nation won't take up the cause and thwart these plans anyway. And who picks up the tab for those services that this tax money was intended to pay for. Why all of the taxpayers in the City of Brantford, of course.
And once these land claims are settled the monies paid are supposed to be returned. Does that really make sense? And even if that happened it could be far in the future when current taxpayer are long gone and won't benefit from this bizarre scheme.
Land claims are just that - claims that are not yet substantiated by fact. The Natives can claim that the land is theirs but there are also documents to show that the land was sold, given away or surrendered. There is also the fact that the original Haldimand proclamation might not even be valid. And complicating things is the fact that there are a number of groups including the Haudenosunee Institute, the Confederacy, the Elected Band Council, the Mohawk Nation and the Montours and their supporters all claiming to represent the Natives. A deadline to solve these claims will do nothing if one or both sides can't agree.
Development in Brantford is necessary and must proceed, but adding a new onerous burden onto already some of the highest taxed people in Ontario is not the way to go. Many, especially seniors and those on fixed incomes, faced with the rising cost of gas and other necessities, are finding it hard to make ends meet. Driving up property taxes to benefit developers will just cause more suffering and many may simply choose to leave Brantford altogether for areas where the property taxes are much lower. How will this benefit the community?
If Charest thinks that paying money to the Natives is the solution, then let him and his group of developers make the payments out of their profits. After all the money might be returned to them. Someday.
posted by The Grouchy Old Man at 1:58 PM
6 Comments:
Well, I can put your mind at rest about one thing: The Haldimand Proclamation is valid. That is why the government made two offers already.
I was shocked at what was presented too. Heck, everywhere else across the country it is the company that pays the revenues, etc. owing to First Nations, not the municipality. But then, usually they know going in. Brantford didn't warn the developers, didn't consult ... so I guess Brantford has to take some responsibility, and the province, of course, whose legal duty it is to consult with Six Nations before approving any development in the Haldimand Tract.
I suppose at least they took the first step to talk about what can be done.
And how does one now go about proving that he or she is a rightful and intended beneficiary of this 200 year old "proclamation"? A piece of plastic issued by the government?
That isn't our responsibility. We are responsible only for paying our debts and obligations.
So let me get this straight: You have no obligation to provide evidence that *you personally* have valid title to a piece of land that by all indications, belongs to someone else? How convenient.
I don't have to prove anything as I am not an Indigenous person.
'Membership' in Indigenous communities is up to their Council.
You wrote:
"Membership' in Indigenous communities is up to their Council."
Oh, my apologies, and how does the "council" establish that they, and only they, are the rightful and intended beneficiary of the Haldimand Proclamation, a status presumably denied to natives *outside* the council?
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