by Jennifer Pritchett
Northern News Services

NNSL (Aug 15/97) - Aboriginal land claims have thrown a wrench into the city's plans to build a $10-million recreational complex.

City council decided Monday to send a request to the territorial cabinet for land on which to build the facility because aboriginal groups control the land council wants to built the facility on.

The Twin Pine Hill site near the two high schools is under the jurisdiction of the Yellowknives Dene while the Treaty 8 land claim is under negotiation with the federal government.

Alderman Vi Beck, who is against bringing the issue to cabinet, said that it could have been solved through negotiation with the Yellowknives Dene.

Beck brought the idea of negotiation to city staff. She said there was no effort to set up meetings with the Dene to discuss the issue.

"I came up with the idea and I gave it to (city administrator) Doug Lagore and it was given to the mayor and that's where it ended," she said.

Beck said the Yellowknives Dene won't give the go-ahead for the city to build the facility because they feel that they are giving up their rights and want some compensation for it.

In a letter to the city, the chiefs of Dettah and Ndilo confirmed that they won't hand over the land without compensation.

"Our members were very upset about the loss of land to the city of Yellowknife without any compensation in the past," wrote Jonas Sangris and Darrell Beaulieu.

Mayor Dave Lovell said that the city is taking the situation to cabinet because the commissioner's land issue has the potential to stifle the growth of the city.

"The majority of land you can build on for the arena is commissioners land," he said. "If the city can't build on it for an arena or a truck stop, it puts a hold on the land. It's become a serious constraint on what the city can do."

Lovell said that the land became commissioned in the mid-1980s, when aboriginal groups opened their land claims.

Earlier this year the city's director of community services, Max Hall, said the planned completion date for the facility was Aug. 31, 1998.

Lovell expects the land rights issue to delay the project for at least a year. He has no idea how long it will take cabinet to decide if the city gets the land.

Let's not forget, he added, "it's public land for public use."