Crooked Lake cottagers push back on lease increases

 Hundreds of cottage owners who lease lots on Crooked Lake are pushing back against new rates.

The Sakimay First Nation owns the land and set new rates, which are much higher than cottagers were used to.

Marc Saleski's family enjoys water skiing and wakeboarding on the lake, as well as fishing.

They have leased lakefront property for 15 years and said their annual rate was $700 but jumped to $4,000.

"I just thought gee, that's too high," Saleski told CBC News.

More than 300 cottage owners were given new rates, in many cases the new lease rates were five to eight times higher than what they had been.

The increases were made following an appraisal, in 2008, that found the lease rates had been too low.

The cottage owners have banded together to challenge the increases, in court.

While the legal case has been going through the preliminary stages, the cottage owners say they are keen to negotiate a solution to the lease issue.

"It would have been nice to have some consultation," Dave Blackwell, from the Grenfell Beach Association, said of the process that led to the rate increases.

According to Blackwell, the owners have had their own appraisals done and believe the rates set by Sakimay are too high.

Chief Lynne Acoose said the new rates are a reflection of fair market value for recreational property.

"We just want to keep pace with the inflation," Acoose told CBC News. "Keep pace with economy, keep pace with the growing membership [and] keep pace with the growing community needs."

The issue could be resolved through negotiation, but if that does not work out the lawsuit could be heard by a judge in 2014.