Former Richmond, B.C., city councillor Harold Steves' family has been farming in the area since 1877, lending their name to the community of Steveston.
The 88-year-old former politician only retired from council three years ago, and few can match his knowledge of the controversies surrounding Richmond's farmland — the creation of the province's agricultural land reserve, influxes of foreign-money investors, a spate of mega-mansion construction and now the Cowichan Nation's Aboriginal title claim.