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In Point Roberts, Wash., the economy turns on “gas, milk and cheese,” said local real estate agent Jim Julius.

Under different circumstances, the isolated 1200-hectare U.S. peninsula of Point Roberts would have been an overlooked corner of the sprawl surrounding Greater Vancouver. But the 1,300-person community owes its strange existence to the 1846 Oregon Treaty, which divided the Pacific Northwest along the 49th parallel — unwittingly sealing off a small enclave of U.S. land. British colonial authorities offered a more accessible plot of territory in exchange, but their entreaties were stubbornly ignored.

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Lucky thing, too, because in only 40 years, some settlers over the border would lay the foundations for Canada’s third-largest city. Today, Point Roberts relies heavily on offering a miniature U.S. to its 2.5 million next-door neighbours.

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The community’s five gas stations abound with B.C. licence plates filling up with fuel at 10¢ to 30¢ less per litre than in Canada. A liquor store sells cut-rate spirits and obscure U.S. beers. Small grocery retailers sell low-priced dairy products. Point Roberts restaurants also serve up medium-rare burgers, a delicacy so scorned by B.C. health codes that it is virtually non-existent in Vancouver. “We need to put a disclaimer on our menu telling you the health department advises against it, but you definitely can get a medium rare hamburger in Point Roberts,” said Joan Roberts, manager of Brewster’s Fine Foods.