Who sets the rules for Sylvia Grinnell Park? The city or the GN?

View over the Grinnell River in the Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park near Iqaluit. (FILE PHOTO)

Some clarification would seem helpful for Iqaluit residents and visitors to the Sylvia Grinnell Territorial Park (Iqaluit Kuunga) regarding shared jurisdictions within the official Iqaluit and park boundaries.

If the City administration holds jurisdiction over uses and development (see “Council Votes To Approve Bridge, Nunatsiaq News, May 31, 2002 and Permitted Uses in the Park Reserve, Sylvia Grinnell Master Plan) of all lands falling within its legislated territory (Schedule A, Zoning By-Law #704) including the western portion of the territorial reserve, why not simply divide the Territorial Park into its two components, Territorial and Municipal, and identify them as such on official GN and City maps.

And, further, would the City or Sustainable Development Department care to inform this reader which of the 128-plus municipal bylaws and amendments (ie: Domestic Animal Control By-Law #538 and ATV By-Laws #557/373, Highway Traffic Act etc.) are currently being enforced inside the park boundaries and under what legislation this overlap of territorial and municipal governance is accepted?

If the “Open Area Zone” (shown as OR on the above-mentioned Fig. A) and “Open Spaces” (shown on Populated Area Land Use, General Plan By-Law #703) are, in fact, ceded or designated for exactly the same uses (fishing, hiking, berry picking etc.), why not simply use the same colour codes for zone identification on the maps to avoid confusion and join the two separate management portfolios to save human and financial resources in what many perceive as challenging times?”

P.S. If park managers are worried enough about domestic dogs potentially interacting with park visitors to call in city animal control officers, what are they going to do if the tourists stumble across Arctic wolves, polar bears or other predators in the expanses of the park?

Philip Marsh
Iqaluit

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