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Exactly what impact will British Columbia’s UN inspired reconciliation law, DRIPA, have on communities? For residents of Okanagan Falls, a small beachside town in the South Okanagan, that question has become all too real after their vote to incorporate.

What many residents didn’t expect is that incorporation came with reconciliation strings attached, giving their neighbouring Osoyoos First Nation new influence over the fate of their community.

That influence includes removing Crown land from the pending municipality’s boundaries, requiring notification of any proposed developments, and even renaming Okanagan Falls, and likely some of its streets, to whatever name the band chooses.

During a recent public meeting organized by the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen (RDOS), residents expressed frustration after learning these reconciliation measures would be embedded into their Letters Patent, the legal document required to officially become a municipality. That means the town must pay for an Indigenous advisory board to inform mayor and city council decisions, and First Nations governments residents don’t elect will have a formal say over the community, despite only three percent of the population being Indigenous.

The concerns aren’t just hypothetical. In a statement to the CBC, Osoyoos Band Chief Clarence Louie has already defended the push to change Okanagan Falls' name, calling it “an important and long overdue step” and dismissing the authority of any future council regarding the matter by saying: “When it comes to reconciliation and land claims and Indigenous people having rights, those aren't up for a vote.”

For locals, the irony is bitter. Okanagan Falls was originally founded as “Dogtown” before being coined “Okanagan Falls,” derived from the Syilx language, often interpreted as “place of water” or “people living where you can see the top.” In 1899, the town post office adopted the name Okanagan Falls, and after nearly a century of the community embracing that identity, the name was formally registered as Okanagan Falls in 1983.

Okanagan Falls residents' concerns echo what’s already happening elsewhere in B.C., such as Vancouver recently renaming Trutch Street to šxʷməθkʷəy̓əmasəm street, and Powwel River’s community divide over the Tla'amin Nation’s calls to rename that city.

Rebel News travelled to Okanagan Falls to speak with residents and RDOS Director Matt Taylor about their frustrations, and whether they believe an upcoming meeting with B.C.’s Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, Christine Boyle, who formerly served as Minister of Indigenous Relations and co-chaired Vancouver’s UNDRIP Task Force, will finally result in their community’s voice mattering just as much as the Osoyoos Nation’s.