Saskatchewan's Indian population is growing rapidly with one-third of all citizens expected to be of aboriginal ancestry in twenty or thirty years from now. Moreover, today over 50% of all status Indians live off-reserve in towns and cities. A major question is: will establishing so-called "urban reserves" within the boundaries of Saskatchewan's cities help native people make their way in the modern economy, or are they simply perpetuating the problems endemic in the current reserve system

Back in 1992 more than two dozen Indian bands signed the Treaty Land Entitlement Agreement with the provincial and federal governments to "make good" on unfulfilled treaty promises. More than $500 million was to be provided over a 12-year period for bands to acquire land from willing buyers anywhere in the province - up to 1.6 million acres.

Many bands have chosen to buy land in Saskatchewan's cities and towns, primarily for commercial development. Once purchased, the Indian band can petition the federal government to give the area full reserve status, where normal property rights, jurisdictions and taxes don't apply.

There are currently 17 urban reserves in Saskatchewan located in cities such as, Prince Albert, Yorkton and Saskatoon, and smaller centers like Fort Qu'Appelle, Meadow Lake, Sturgeon Lake, Lebret, Pelican Narrows, and Sandy Bay. But dozens more are on the way, with as many as 39 tracts of urban land awaiting approval in the next few months and years from the federal Cabinet to achieve Indian reserve status. (Unfortunately, there is no way to tell, however, where the land awaiting reserve status is located until Cabinet approves the request).

Land ownership of urban property can be a good thing for isolated bands, and the investment can be good for local economies. But there is potential for the benefits to be warped and destroyed when that property is turned into "urban reserve" land - Indian enclaves with different rules and tax status than everywhere else in the country.

Unfair competition is one problem. Yes, Indian bands must negotiate agreements with local municipalities and school boards to pay fees in lieu of the regular property taxes. However, Indians working on urban reserves do not pay income tax, so businesses can pay lower wages without the workers losing any take-home pay. A native-owned business would not have to pay sales taxes for goods and supplies delivered to their shop located on reserve land. This is how things work on every reserve, but it can become an even bigger problem when the reserve is an office park or a strip mall in the middle of town, cheek-to-cheek with businesses encumbered by normal taxes. Native-owned businesses, native workers, and businesses operating in partnership with urban reserves have a clear, but unfair advantage over the competition.

Ethnic segregation is another problem. The reserve system isolates native people from the economy, and the result has been disastrous poverty and social ills. Saskatchewan Indians have been voting with their feet, and today more than half of them choosing to live off-reserve. Many of these people are working, paying taxes, and contributing to the community. Urban reserves have the potential to actually pull aboriginal workers, professionals, and entrepreneurs away from the mainstream economy and back into a segregated economy.