The Ambassador Bridge . May 24, 2018. (Photo by Paul Pedro)The Ambassador Bridge . May 24, 2018. (Photo by Paul Pedro)
Windsor

Walpole Island Wants Compensation For Bridge Land

The Ambassador Bridge Company and the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority still need Walpole Island First Nation's consent to build their new spans.

That is according to Walpole Island First Nation Consultation Manager Dr. Dean Jacobs.  He says Walpole Island still owns the land where the bridges will be built, and is working on a government deal to get compensation.

Jacobs says the Ambassador Bridge can stay if the government deal is successful.

"The reserve was set apart in 1790 in that treaty, and it continues to be reserve today. We have advanced a specific land claim and we are waiting for Canada to respond to that claim," says Jacobs.

Jacobs says negotiations with Transport Canada have been going on for 11 years.

"We shared most of the reserve but kept 68 acres. So, the 68 acres that we are standing on now, is still part of land holdings for the Walpole Island First Nation," he says.

Jacobs says treaties dating back two centuries can prove that the land under the bridges belongs to Walpole Island.

"There is an element of consent for any development that might impact the aboriginal title of a First Nation, and that's what we have here," Jacobs says.

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