[Q] We own a large recreational property with considerable lake frontage and are contemplating either an outright sale or perhaps joining with a reputable partner to develop the property to its full potential. What are our options? 

Developing waterfront property can be both a rewarding and a frustrating experience as you proceed through all the necessary regulatory approvals. Trow Global has expertise in geomatics, planning, engineering, environmental and materials testing and can offer a wide range of services to support your development project.

From the surveying perspective, there are many things to consider at the outset that can add value to your lands either for sale or in later development. One of the first questions that should be answered is Is there an existing survey and how current is it? If you do not have an existing survey showing all the boundaries and improvements on and adjoining the lands then one should be obtained at the outset.

An up-to-date Surveyor's Real Property Report will find or reset all the survey monumentation (bars) that mark the limits of the property and show any encumbrances such as easements/rights-of-way that the property is subject to or together with and will document any issues with respect to road/water access that may exist on title and that could adversely affect the development potential and clarify the issue of what exactly forms your riparian (water) boundary. Often owners are only partially aware of issues that may affect their water access, such as the existence of a 20.12 m Crown Reserve in front of all or a portion of their lands or flooding rights granted to a Third party that may not be clearly evident in a review of existing title documents.

With an up-to-date survey, consider such things as Planning Act status including questions such as:

Once you have these answers, you will be in a better position to assess your options. Should you decide to sell, you have a valuable tool in your hands in terms of an up-to-date survey that will help ensure you and your consultants (realtors, appraisers, etc.) can arrive at the true value of your property. If you decide to proceed with development, you also have base document to build other work on such as Planning Act applications, preliminary design and engineering, etc., which your surveyor can help expedite. The cost of the initial survey will usually be recouped several times over during the course of the project by saving the time and effort of advisors;  helping make sound economic decisions from beginning to end and by reducing your risk at every decision point along the way.

For additional information you may wish to check the following sites:
http://www.mmah.com/
http://www.aols.org/
http://www.mnr.com/

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[Q] Our staked mining claims show potential based on the assessment work performed to date. We are considering upgrading our title to lease status, what steps are involved?

Staked mining claims are subject to the requirement under the Mining Act for the performance of a certain amount of assessment work in order to maintain their status. Failure to comply can mean the loss of staked claim status and the claims may become open for staking and title to them lost. Also,  the Act and Regulations under the Act are susceptible to changes at any time. If the claims show significant potential then an upgrade in title to that of a lease may be warranted to crystallize the value of exploration and assessment work undertaken to date and to potentially reduce royalty costs going forward.

Issuance of a lease under the Mining Act or The Aggregates Act will require a survey of either the individual claims or at the very least the perimeter of the claims in accordance with whichever Act you will be proceeding under (if the option is available). The survey will need to be done under Instructions from the Mining Recorders Office and will have input from the Surveyor General's Office at the Ministry of Natural Resources and will of course be subject to all the other Acts and Regulations regarding surveys in the appropriate jurisdiction.

Depending upon location and the restrictions to be imposed, surveying could cover many items.  These may include; significant retracement of previously existing limits if the claims are in subdivided townships (this is often a substantial part of the cost, particularly if the underlying survey fabric has not been retraced since the original survey; establishment of roads and or shore reservations around bodies of water to be reserved from the lease; there may also be existing absolute or surface rights titleholders' interests that need to be delineated as well.

All of these factors can increase the cost of the survey and it is important to secure a survey provider who is familiar with the legislation, has the experience, and also possesses the technological expertise in terms of access to photogrammetry, GPS, GIS and other technologies to  recommend the best overall solution.

For additional information you may wish to check the following sources:
http://www.mndm.com/
http://www.mnr.com/
http://www.elaws.com/

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[Q] My neighbour says he has a property survey that is different from mine - which one is correct?
 
In addition to the field survey requirement to find and/or set survey monuments on the ground, each cadastral survey project has a significant documentary research component that is often under-appreciated by the public.

Proper research must be conducted in the historical records of the firm undertaking the project as well as those of other surveyors who may have worked previously in the area. The public records at the appropriate local Land Registry Office (LRO) need to be searched for the subject property as well as for any abutting properties in order to ascertain consistency amongst all the descriptions and to confirm whether there are any easements, rights-of-ways or other title issues that need to be considered during the course of the survey.

Once the documentary research has been completed, the survey firm will likely perform pre-calculations in the office based on the information already gathered, in an attempt to minimize the time spent in the field as usually this is the most expensive portion of these types of surveys.

Based on the survey evidence in the paper record and survey monuments found on the ground the surveyor will re-establish the property limits using the Court tested principles of "Best Evidence" and prepare a plan offering an opinion as to the boundary locations (and/or any improvements on the lands). The surveyor's opinion is only as good as the research and survey work on the ground. Poor research or a lack of a thorough search for evidence in the field can lead to poor decisions which might be overturned later by the Courts.

The obvious caveat here is that price alone should not be an overriding determinant in selecting a surveyor for your project.

Further information regarding property surveys may be obtained at www.aols.org .
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