Mike W. Bryant
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (May 28/04) - The waters may be murky, but City Hall is diving into the issue of regulatory control over Yellowknife waterways yet again.

On Tuesday night, city council voted 4-3 to approve a recommendation to direct administration to investigate what other jurisdictions do to regulate development over water.

The directive stemmed from a motion made by Coun. Bob Brooks last month, requesting that the city seek an interjurisdictional agreement with other government agencies and First Nations for Yellowknife Bay and other bodies of water within city limits.

This is not the first time city council tried to flex its muscles over Yellowknife waterways. A legal battle between the city and houseboaters on Yellowknife Bay erupted in 1996 after the city tried to impose building codes and property taxes on them.

They gave up the case four years later after the Department of Municipal and Community Affairs decided they had no control over the lake bed.

But Brooks wants another crack at it, and figures if they can get the federal and territorial governments on board, they will have better luck this time.

Other unregulated development

He also maintains that unless council acts now, the city could be up to its eyeballs in houseboats and other unregulated development within a few years.

"I'm really tired of being reactive on this issue," said Brooks.

"When does it become an issue? When it's already a problem?"

Some councillors suggested, however, that if Brooks wants information so badly he should look for it himself instead of getting administration to do it.

"This is not something that has been approved in our goals and objectives," said Coun. Kevin O'Reilly.

"I don't want to spend the next two-and-half years of my time on council dealing with this issue."