Court decision pending on challenge to sale of CN Rail corridor in Okanagan

KELOWNA – A court ruling comes down Monday morning that could impact the proposed purchase of the Okanagan Rail Corridor between Kelowna and Vernon.

Three days of arguments concluded Wednesday afternoon in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.

The Okanagan Indian Band is seeking an injunction to block the sale of the abandoned line by CN Rail to three municipal governments for $21.9 million.

The band claims ownership of about 22 kilometres of the line through the Commonage area near of Vernon.

On its website, the City of Kelowna states: “Local government partners remain committed to acquisition of the corridor on the understanding that CN owns the land outright and therefore has the legal right to sell it. The federal government’s status report on First Nation land claims states the Commonage Claim was reviewed and closed with no lawful obligation found.”