Dear Editor
I recently read of a Prince George family wishing to donate their farmland to their community.
I wondered if they realized that in B.C. the Community Charter Act can be used to dismantle a trust agreement with a municipality. This practice was evident recently in the Supreme Court decision to allow the Town of Comox to demolish the former home of Hamilton Mack Laing, to erect a viewing platform and educational panels rather than to honour a trust agreement with him that would have seen the community gain a nature museum on his seaside property.
The Community Charter Act regards municipalities as knowing the best interests of the community.
It also moves the attorney general鈥檚 role of having to protect the gift giver under Charitable Trust Law to now protect the interests of the municipality under the Community Charter Act. It sends a chilling message to aging citizens who had intended to leave a lasting legacy for the people in their communities through a trust agreement.
B.C. is currently the only province with a Community Charter Act. We may see increasing community pressure to exit trust agreements, not only in B.C. but in other provinces if they see this legislation as a tool to avoid trust conditions.
It is time for all provincial parties to reassess the Community Charter Act. This is an issue especially impacting our senior population and communities that were meant to benefit from their trust agreements.
Can the trust go back into trusts?
Barbara Martin,
Comox
