Province buys disputed land

The Ontario government has agreed to pay Henco Industries Limited $12.3 million for the Douglas Creek Estates property in Caledonia that has been occupied by Aboriginal protestors since Feb. 28.

The occupation was begun to draw attention to Six Nations? claim to the lands on which Henco planned to build a 600- home subdivision. The property in question is part of a large section of land deeded to Six Nations by the government of Upper Canada in 1784 and ownership was never surrendered, Six Nations contends. The land will be held in trust by the province until a final decision is made regarding ownership of the property.

The province has also agreed to further compensate the developer for loss of future profits it will incur by walking away from its proposed housing development, but the exact amount of that compensation is still under negotiation.