Mapping the Zoning of First Nations in Metro Vancouver
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This project mapped First Nations zoning and land use regulations in Metro Vancouver, integrating them into the Metro Vancouver Zoning (MVZ) dataset to enable spatial analysis of Indigenous-led housing development.
Jump to Research OutputsHow can First Nations zoning and land use regulations be mapped and integrated into planning data to support Indigenous-led housing development?
This project extended the MVZ initiative by creating shapefiles documenting First Nations zoning, as well as three to five case studies of on-reserve housing projects completed or in progress on First Nations land, showcasing the role of zoning. This project was renewed for a second stage; details on outputs and press coverage are available at bsh.ubc.ca/research/comparing-first-nations-led-land-and-housing-regulation.
Project Lead(s):
Home Organization:
University of British Columbia
Other Participants:
Nathanael Lauster, (UBC),
Dr. Jens Von Bergmann, MountainMath
Funding Stream:
Community-Focused Project
Funding window:
May 1, 2021
Community Partner:
Khelsilem, Squamish Nation (advising)
This project was renewed for funding and details about outputs and press can be found on the second stage research page.
View the second stageBackground
This project built on the MVZ project, which assembles zoning by-laws from more than 20 municipal governments into a coherent spatial dataset supporting analysis of land use and housing supply at the lot level, integrating this information into an open-access mapping platform. Comparable zoning data for First Nations lands had not been systematically assembled within this framework. In Metro Vancouver, six of the nine First Nations, including the Squamish Nation, Musqueam Nation, and Tsleil-Waututh Nation, operate under comprehensive land codes enabled through legislation such as the Indian Act and the First Nations Land Management Act. These frameworks govern land use and enable specific forms of on-reserve housing development, but the relevant data remained dispersed across government websites and other sources, without a spatial format. This project addressed that gap by mapping First Nations zoning and land use regulations and integrating them into the MVZ platform.
Methodology
This project developed shapefiles documenting First Nations zoning and land use regulations for integration into the MVZ platform, and produced 3-5 case studies of on-reserve housing projects to illustrate the role of zoning in Indigenous-led housing development.
Results
This project was renewed for a second stage, which comparatively documents First Nations-led land and housing regulation models across Metro Vancouver (see ‘Comparing First Nations Led Land and Housing Regulation Models across Metro Vancouver’). Details on outputs and press coverage from that stage are available at bsh.ubc.ca/research/comparing-first-nations-led-land-and-housing-regulation.