Access to Crown Lands

Background/overview

Approximately 88% of Newfoundland and Labrador are Crown lands, which in turn are often leased out or tenured to commercial interests. The dominance of Crowns lands in the province makes the Province of Newfoundland and Labrador a critical player in land use planning and management.

Land-use related issues

Municipalities have listed the on-going inaccessibility of crown lands adjacent to communities as a major development and land use hurdle. For example, many communities in the Coast of Bays region are growing at a rapid pace as a result of the aquaculture industry. This creates the need for housing for workers and infrastructure within the region, however, there is considered to be little support in terms of access to Crown lands for communities that must access these lands to establish residential properties for workers and their families. Community leaders suggest that this not only hurts their industry but the region as a whole.

The issue of access to Crown lands at an affordable cost for municipal development is a subject of ongoing discussion between municipal governments, through Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Province. Municipal representatives suggest that one way to help to address affordable housing issues in their communities is to increase access to affordable land for development. Currently, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador charges municipalities the market value to purchase Crown land, but this price is often too high for cash-strapped towns and the cost of developing a property can be at least $20,000. As a possible solution to the affordability issue, towns have requested that the provincial government waive land purchase fees to allow town expansion. If a waiver cannot be granted then alternative payment or financing arrangement could be considered. Several communities in the region have noted that they require more access to Crown lands for town expansion, including Brighton, South Brook, King’s Point, Triton, and Robert’s Arm.

Related information resources

http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/env/department/branches/divisions/crown_lands.html

http://www.env.gov.nl.ca/env/lands/titles.html