Banff is in Treaty 7 territory and leases its land from the feds.
asserted
Banff → lease → feds
So what happens to it if Alberta separates?
asserted
Alberta → happen → it
Mayor of the small mountain town has called for unity in advance of the referendum
In the thousands of pages of negotiations that would surely result if Alberta were to secede from Canada, at least one chapter would likely be dedicated to the Town of Banff.
asserted
chapter → call → Banff
This tourist mecca is already a jurisdictional anomaly: situated on federal parkland that the town has leased for $550,000 a year since it incorporated in 1990.
asserted
it → situate → 1990
Residents own their homes but not their land; that's also leased from Ottawa.
asserted
that → own → Ottawa
The province operates the local hospital and schools, but the federal government has veto power over most bylaw changes.
asserted
government → operate → changes
And with Oct. 19 approaching — when Alberta will vote on, among other questions, whether to hold a referendum on separating from Canada — many of those who live in this mountain resort town are worried about the future.
asserted
who → approach → future
The Town of Jasper, roughly 300 kilometres northwest of Banff, faces similar issues, given it's also based in a federal park in Alberta.
But it's the questions raised particularly in Banff, which has almost twice the population of Jasper, that indicate the scale of the seismic shift should a province secede.
asserted
province → face → shift
Even if Albertans eventually voted to leave federation, they cannot legally do so without Canada's agreement, according to a 1998 Supreme Court decision that provides a framework on separation.
uncertain
that → vote → separation
Negotiations over how to divide assets and debts could take years, according to political science professor Tom Urbaniak, based on the few comparables, such as the dissolution of Czechoslovakia or signing of the Nisga'a Agreement — which took a decade of negotiations between British Columbia and the involved First Nations.
uncertain
which → divide → Columbia
"Separation means that everything is an open question," said Urbaniak, director of Cape Breton University's Tompkins Institute, adding that he hopes the concept remains hypothetical.
asserted
concept → mean → Institute
Would Alberta — as Quebec separatists have asserted through the indivisibility principle — claim all land within its current borders, regardless of whether it is federal or provincial?
uncertain
it → assert → borders
What would it have to trade for Ottawa to agree?
asserted
Ottawa → have → What
Or would the town of roughly 8,000 people become a tiny piece of Canada isolated within a new country?
asserted
town → become → country
"This is what makes separation so perilous and, just from an objective perspective, so irresponsible [because it's not] a simplistic option," Urbaniak said.
asserted
Urbaniak → make → perspective
A plea from Banff's mayor
Banff's mayor has urged Albertans to vote against a referendum.
asserted
mayor → urge → referendum
Ottawa has been a partner for decades, Corrie DiManno said, collaborating on major portfolios, including conservation management, wildfire prevention and housing.
asserted
DiManno → say → management
The questions sparked by separation have created anxiety for her constituents, she said in a recent interview with CBC's The Sunday Magazine.
asserted
she → spark → Magazine
DiManno keeps hearing from businesses worried about potential secession deterring visitors — last year, 4.5 million tourists went through Banff National Park — or what it might mean for those who live in Banff but work elsewhere in the Bow Valley.
uncertain
who → hear → Valley
"People have talked about, you know, am I going to need a passport to go to Canmore," she said, referring to another mountain hub a 20-minute drive southeast on Highway 1, but outside of the federal park.
"We really haven't had any formal conversations and, frankly, I really hope that we don't need to.
asserted
we → talk → conversations
I'm hoping that Albertans come out and finish this conversation once and for all to say that we will stay in Canada."
asserted
we → hop → Canada
Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno is officially sworn in as a member of council during a swearing-in process on Oct. 28, 2025.
asserted
DiManno → swear → Oct.
DiManno is urging Albertans to keep the province in the federation.
asserted
DiManno → urge → federation
Her comments echo her May 25 Instagram post, which received widespread support — with hundreds of commenters thanking her for standing up for their community, for Alberta and for Canada.
uncertain
hundreds → echo → Canada
In it, DiManno emphasized the law of the land runs deeper than municipal or provincial governance.
asserted
law → emphasize → governance
"Banff is on Treaty 7 territory and this treaty predates both Banff National Park and the province of Alberta," she said.
asserted
she → predate → Alberta
"We all share a responsibility to respect the spirit and obligations of the treaties that created Canada.
asserted
that → share → Canada
For centuries, the Stoney Nakoda Nations have referred to Tunnel Mountain, which overlooks Banff on the town's eastern edge, as the Sacred Guardian Buffalo Mountain.
asserted
which → refer → Mountain
The mountain and the area's hot springs are sacred to the surrounding Indigenous communities and are both included in the 149-year-old Treaty 7 agreement.
asserted
mountain → surround → agreement
What that means is "not only would Indigenous nations have to have a seat at the table [in negotiations], if a treaty is being cancelled or significantly altered — but the consent of the affected Indigenous nations would be required for this all to be legal and constitutional," Urbaniak said.
asserted
Urbaniak → mean → nations
A coalition of First Nations has already launched a legal challenge against the question of separation being put to a referendum.
asserted
coalition → launch → referendum
- Analysis
First Nations' court challenge may block Alberta separatism itself, not just petition drive
First Nations in Alberta work to mobilize voters, prepare community members for referendum
The calls for separation to be put to a vote were initiated by the citizen group Stay Free Alberta, which claimed in the spring to have more than 177,800 signatures backing its push.
uncertain
which → block → push
A judge annulled the petition in May, saying the province had failed in its duty to consult with First Nations.
uncertain
province → annul → Nations
But Premier Danielle Smith then announced Alberta would appeal that decision and went ahead with the referendum on whether to hold a vote on separation.
asserted
Alberta → announce → separation
Though Smith's office has since maintained it wants Alberta to remain in Canada, pundits have noted the decision to hold the referendum was made to appease hardline separatist factions in her voting base.
asserted
decision → maintain → base
When asked about the premier's vision for Banff should Alberta separate, Smith's press secretary responded in an email that the United Conservative Party and caucus are committed to unity.
asserted
Party → ask → unity
"We remain focused on our work to restore Albertans' hope in our country by building a stronger Alberta within a united Canada," Sam Blackett wrote in the statement.
asserted
Blackett → remain → statement
Parks Canada did not directly answer questions about what would happen in the case of a separation, saying the federal government "respects the democratic process taking place in Alberta" and that it works "in collaboration with provinces, territories, Indigenous groups and communities" to protect "national historic sites and national parks."
'We are home'
asserted
We → answer → sites
Stoney Nakoda elder Alice Kaquitts scoffs at the idea of land ownership, noting that the area's First Nations have been part of Banff's stewards "since time immemorial" and have a deep and sacred connection to the area.
asserted
Nations → scoff → area
Kaquitts recalls how, as a girl, she and her parents would drive to Banff to sell crafts, with family pointing out landmarks and their connection to her culture along the route; how, as they drove into the park and the mountain rose up, her parents would pull over and get out of their vehicle to pray.
asserted
parents → recall → vehicle
…and 9 more, not listed.
The Aporia
