Residential development in Vancouver, Canada is having a lot of momentum as new power plants are not coming in from the north or south. On the contrary, they are the original inhabitants of the area and lived here long before the arrival of European settlers. Until recently, they have not participated in the real estate market at all, which has brought untold wealth to many and made Vancouver one of the most expensive cities in the world.

Vancouver’s three Aboriginal communities, Canada’s first peoples as they define themselves, are now in a paradoxical situation. As owners of vast tracts of land in a major metropolitan area, they want to shape the city themselves, which has grown in recent decades thanks to investment from Hong Kong and China.

Wilson Williams, councilor and spokesman for the Squamish Nation, one of the three communities, acknowledges that Aboriginal people have now become housing agents. Squamish Nation took the first step last month by creating a massive 40-acre residential complex near British Bay.

Canada’s First Nations, as they are called, became housing agents.

The fact that the indigenous peoples actively contribute to the development of Vancouver is the result of decades of legal battles, as well as the unity and cooperation of the three communities. At the same time, it is connected with the process of national recognition of the martyrdom of the indigenous population in the past. Pope Francis recently apologized for the role of the Roman Catholic Church in this tragedy.

As happened in the United States, the ancestral lands were taken over by the first nations, which now number 7,500 people. However, the case of Vancouver differs mainly in that the British Columbian authorities never signed contracts and treaties with the Aboriginal people. As Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart explains: “The British governor of the city simply took Aboriginal land and gave it to his friends. This is illegal under British law, which has served as a springboard for all claims.” Thus, after decades of legal battles, the indigenous peoples have become the largest landowners in the city and finance their development projects with bank loans and federal government funds, and in some cases partner with development groups.

Aboriginal ancestral lands claims are not limited to Vancouver, but cover many regions and cities across Canada.

It took time and effort to create the unity of the three tribes that now make up the first nations, and today it is taken for granted. Aborigines have not yet realized their new strength, but do not hide their joy from the fact that they now occupy an important place in the development of Vancouver.