By Lawrence Solomon | The Financial Post [Full Text Available Here]
Summary
Under a new bylaw scheduled to pass next month in Tiny, Ont., a rural township on the shores of Georgian Bay, thousands of property owners will lose their right to do anything to their property apart from “activities such as garden weeding, raking, and minor trimming of vegetation.” Without township permission, residents will be barred from installing a birdfeeder, planting trees or erecting a flagpole, let alone building a tool shed or larger structure.
The bylaw resembles a return to the historical relationship between masters and serfs, where benevolent masters allowed serfs significant freedom to use the land as long as they paid their taxes. In some instances, deserving serfs were even granted nominal ownership of the land they worked, similar to how residents of Tiny retain formal title to their properties but face significant restrictions on their use.
The bylaw applies to all privately owned properties along Tiny’s 70 kilometers of Georgian Bay shoreline, extending 45 meters inland from the shore. It is designed to protect dunes and beaches from misuse by property owners.
Critics who view Tiny Township’s bylaw as overly restrictive are adopting a narrow and ahistorical perspective. For most of human history, property ownership was concentrated among the few, while the majority were subservient. The past 300 years, during which property ownership became more widespread in some parts of the Western world, have been an anomaly. As we gradually revert to historical norms, property is increasingly becoming a liability rather than an asset, subject to the whims of minor officials. This transformation is gradual and imperceptible at first but is relentless and inevitable, beginning with small steps like those seen in Tiny.
Lawrence Solomon is a founding columnist at Financial Post and a serf of Tiny Township. To contact, email: LawrenceSolomon@nextcity.com.
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The original version of this commentary is available at the publisher’s website here.