By Sandy Foster.
In the beginning, way back in 1969, what Block Bros bought was the 26,800 acres 105 Mile Ranch from RM Monical &Sons.
This ranch stretched from close to the southern tip of Lac la Hache to just north of 100 Mile House. The initial development vision was that 80 per cent would remain undeveloped or be used as a working ranch. As we know, Block Bros were unable to proceed with their grand scheme because of the 1973 ALR land freeze. Subsequently, they decided to discontinue development and to sell off the bulk of the ranch property. Henry Block and Pat Corbett in particular, were concerned about how to protect the 108 residents who had been promised a vision of large acres of undeveloped greenbelt lands. They offered to transfer what is our current Greenbelt of 1500 acres to the 108 property owners society for $1. The Greenbelt, as it is today, covers Walker Valley, Block pasture, the 108 and Sepa lake areas and trails and patches of land, in and around the ranch. There is a map on the 108 site at http://www.108ranch.com.
At one dollar, the price and the settlement were fair, but to own this land would mean paying ever increasing land taxes, in perpetuity. Creating a Provincial Park was considered and rejected because we wanted to retain management and control. A plan was worked out whereby the property would be transferred and registered to the CRD (not taxable), who would then pass a By-law providing that the land would be managed by the 108 property owners. A Restrictive Covenant was registered on all greenbelt titles in favour of the Community Hall property, which stipulates that the CRD interests are subject to our community rights. In effect, the CRD holds the Greenbelt lands ‘in trust’ for the benefit of the 108 property owners. So the Greenbelt Commission was created, volunteer directors were drafted and it is all funded by a $10 per lot annual tax. That was 35 years ago, and much of the credit for a win/win outcome goes to AL Richmond.
Our current Directors are Ron Soeder, Chair, Herb Carter, Robbin Edwards, Maggie Griffiths, Dan Jackson, Liz Jones, Robin Nadin, Barry Porter, Al Richmond, and Don White. It is a great time of year to get out and explore our Greenbelt and possibly spot our Pelicans on the 108 Lake.
Coming events at the 108
Coffee club May 18 at 10:30 a.m. at our Hall.
Ghost Hunt May 20 at 8 p.m. at 108 Heritage Site, 250-945-4557.
The Solid Rock Cafe, May 26, music starts at 7 p.m.
108 Lions Dog Walk for Dog Guides, May 28, Ingrid 250-791-5663.
For more 108 information, visit www.108ranch.com or follow ‘108 Mile RCA’ on Facebook.