Charter cities are special regions with charters that grant them significant autonomy from the regulations of their host state. Hong Kong, a successful Chinese city operated under British law, was one of her early inspirations. Examples such as this have fueled criticism that charter cities are „neocolonial.“ However, charter cities inherently do not require a foreign legal framework. Charter City's fundamental purpose is to serve as a platform of discovery and a way to explore governance models that allow more people to choose among successful people.
Sen̓áḵw, an 11-tower development on 10 acres in central Vancouver, AT, is big, ambitious, unmistakably urban, and unmistakably Indigenous. The facility is being built on reservation land owned by the Squamish First Nation and is being led by the Squamish Nation itself in partnership with private real estate developer Westbank. Because the project is on First Nations land rather than city land, it falls under Squamish jurisdiction and is not affected by Vancouver's zoning rules. And the state has chosen to construct buildings that are larger, denser, and taller than the development allowed on city lots.
Interestingly, some people on the progressive left are upset that indigenous peoples are behaving like evil capitalist developers rather than the back-to-the-country people they imagined. It's standing up.
As expected, not everyone is happy about this. Critics include local planners, politicians, and especially residents of Kitsilano Point, a rare waterfront neighborhood adjacent to the preserve. And their critique has a special edge that goes beyond the standard-issue NIMBYism about overly tall buildings and preserving neighborhood features. There is also a deep sense of distrust that indigenous peoples may be in charge of this futuristic urban life. In 2022, Gordon Price, a prominent Vancouver urban planner and former city councilor, told Gitxsan reporter Angela Sterritt: of the building. ”
…. In 2022, Councilor Colleen Hardwick said of (a similar development), „How do you reconcile an Indigenous way of life with an 18-story high-rise building?“ (Needless to say, Hardwick is not indigenous.)
…What frustrates critics, even those who consider themselves progressive, is that reconciliation seems more like a reversal of sorts, wrapping the tapes of history around the past like a museum diorama. That's what I'm looking forward to returning. A coalition of nearby residents of Iy̓álmexw and Sen̓áḵw has presented their own counterproposal for the development of the site, featuring changes such as making the buildings smaller and shorter. At a January public hearing in Iy̓álmexw, one resident called on First Nations to build only with selectively harvested B.C. wood, in line with what she claims are cultural values. Ta. That attitude could relegate indigenous peoples to the role of glorified park wardens.
There are some interesting developments in the United States as well. For example, the Catawba Indian Nation Catawba Digital Special Economic Zone (CDEZ), where I am an advisor. The CDEZ is based on US law but tailored for digital entrepreneurs, freelancers, fintechs, digital assets, Web3, and other breakthrough digital technologies. The progressive left is probably unhappy about that, too. Personally, I am happy to support efforts to empower indigenous communities through capitalist ventures. But more broadly, I support the introduction of new governance models to encourage competition in governance. In other words, it will usher in an era of new discoveries and tie-out competition.
post indigenous charter city It first appeared marginal revolution.