THE MELVILLE @MelvilleAdvance $1.50 PER COPY Friday, GST INCLUDED August 3, 2018 Vol. 92 No. 33 Agreement # 40011922 PROUDLY SERVING MELVILLE AND SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1929 • WWW.GRASSLANDSNEWS.CA • 1-306-728-5448 Cottagers face eviction or higher lease rates By Jason G. Antonio The court set the 2010 to 2014 lease Advance Reporter rates at $1,100 to $1,500, or 1.3 per Crooked Lake cottage owners are cent of land market value. hoping to receive good news from the Sakimay still expects tenants to courts in September — that their pay the higher lease rates from 2015 to leases won’t be so high — after Saki- 2019. Some cottagers haven’t paid their may First Nation demanded they pay lease increases since 2010 based on new rents that are seven times higher. legal advice, while others have termi- Sakimay increased the rents of more nated their agreements. A few cottage than 300 cottage owners by almost 700 owners are challenging that increase per cent in 2009. For some residents, in court as well; that challenge was their rents increased by up to $5,000. initiated in December 2017. Affected cottagers live at Grenfell Shesheep Cottage Owners Beach and Indian Point; some have Association (SCOA) destroyed their cottages because the “We’re sitting and waiting until Sep- Indigenous Services Canada (ISC) told tember comes. We’ll see where we are them to, others are preparing to vacate and see if they come out with a value the buildings, while some have been on (the property) then,” said Tom Cook, evicted. vice-president of SCOA executive. ISC sent a letter last December de- “Hopefully they’re going to reverse manding they pay the full amount of it from the $5,800 they want right now, $5,800 for 2015 to 2019; most cottagers that they’ll come back to a little more had paid one-third of that. reasonable level. The initial rent increase led to a “If that happens, I think a majority class-action lawsuit between cottage of people would sign (the agreement).” owners and the reserve. In 2016, a Cook is a vice-president of the Federal Court judge ruled in the ten- Shesheep Cottage Owners Association ants’ favour and said the rent increases (SCOA). He pointed out SCOA is the le- could not be imposed for a five-year pe- gitimate voice for cottagers at Crooked riod from 2010 to 2014. That decision Lake, not a similarly-named group is currently under appeal by Sakimay. Continued on Page 7 Water plant kicks into gear By Jason G. Antonio Lower level to house Advance Reporter reservoirs, tanks The superstructure of the new water Since April, contractors have poured treatment plant building should be vis- concrete for the building’s floor slab ible by the end of December, since the and walls, said Light. About 80 per next phase of the building’s construc- cent of the lower level is completed; tion has kicked into high gear. this area will house the reservoirs and The water wells near Killaly have tanks for water treatment. already been sunk, the 30-kilometre About 1,000 tonnes of rebar will pipeline bringing water to Melville has have been used once the plant is com- been laid, and the electrical and me- pleted, while roughly 3,200 cubic me- chanical components of the well-control tres of concrete will have been poured. building have been installed. “The other thing they’re working on The pipeline was installed by De- right now is (they’re) starting to form cember 2017, while all tests for flush- up for the concrete pour on the main ing and pressure were completed by floor, which would be close to ground June. Contractors can now also test the level,” Light said. This should be com- electrical components of the well-con- pleted by August. trol building. The pipelines need to be connected “Construction has gone very well,” to part of the building currently being Eric Light, the vice-president of oper- constructed; this will happen in Sep- ations and engineering for SaskWater, tember. No water will flow during this told the Melville Advance. period. A pump test to verify the capacity Engineering firm KMS installed and yields of the wells is all that re- the pipeline, Graham Construction is mains. This helps engineers know if constructing the water treatment plant the pumps are working properly and and well-control building and Associ- There was some clowning around at the Abernethy Fair on July 27, as Jorja Erickson and her are producing the required amount of ated Engineering looked after the proj- dog Roper participated against other mutts in the costume contest. For pictures and stories, water. SaskWater is conducting a 60- ect design. see pages 2 and 3. Photo by Jason G. Antonio day pump test, but it could be shorter About 104 workers — SaskWater, based on the results. Continued on Page 5 • Motor Licence Issuer • Notary Public • Home/Auto/Agro/Commercial • Blue Cross •GMS OPEN Monday - Friday 8:30 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Saturday 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Excluding Long Weekends 228 Main St. 306-728-4457 Email: [email protected] Your Best Insurance Website: www.melvilleagencies.com @MA1974LTD Is An Insurance Broker The Melville Advance 2 August 3, 2018 www.grasslandsnews.ca Fun at Abernethy’s 111th Fair Annie McLean receives some help from her dad, Ryan, during a Sara Kreklewich from Melville takes part in an egg relay race during the Abernethy Fair. Many of the participants were lucky their eggs game of mini golf. Mini golf was one of the new attractions at this were made of plastic since they had a case of dropsey. \HDU·V$EHUQHWK\)DLU With a squeal of delight, kids take part in a potato relay race during the Abernethy Fair on July 27. Nelle Penny, 91, gathers in the Announcement exhibit hall at the Abernethy BLUE CHIP REALTY Mary Cleggett judges some of the entries in the best decorated youths bike contest during the Ab- Fair to showcase her bread, ernethy Fair. which won first place. Sarah Bellamy Residential Agent Serving Melville and Area 306-730-9253 [email protected] I was born and raised in Melville and knew it would always be home no matter where I went. After a few years away to get my Education Degree it was time to move back to my hometown and do just what I had dreamed of, raise a family. Along with my husband Chord, daughter Lyr- ic and son Rivers, we are so happy to call Melville our home. We have taken full advantage of all the great commodities our community has to offer. From the schools that are just down the street, the many after school and community programs, to the small town feel of knowing your neighbours is what makes our city unique. The last 10 years I have had the privilege of teaching and caring for some of our community’s youngest citizens and worked closely with their families. I am extremely excited to continue serving Melville residence. Teaming up with RE/MAX Blue Chip Realty, I am able to pursue my passion of helping people, whether that is to help you find your perfect home or the best buyer for your current home. BLUE CHIP REALTY The Abernethy Agricultural Society celebrated its 111th annual fair and exhibition on July 27 by cutting two cakes: one to honour the Each office in independently owned and operated fair and another to honour Canada. In the picture, from left, are Eileen Emmerson Gaye, Kay Walters, 99, her daughter Jeanette Kirk, Charlie Porter, 2, her brother Wilson, 5, and grandmother Donna Wilks. Photos by Jason G. Antonio 269 Hamilton Road, Yorkton SK 306.783.6666 The Melville Advance @grasslands_news August 3, 2018 3 Fair attracts nat’l visitors By Jason G. Antonio Advance Reporter Having spent a month visiting family in Western Canada, Jim and Donna Dougherty stopped by the 111th 430 Main St. - P.O. Box 1240, Melville, SK S0A 2P0 annual Abernethy Fair • Phone (306) 728-6840 • Fax (306) 728-5911 to view the exhibits and watch the horse show be- Website: www.melville.ca fore heading home to St. Marys, Ont. “This is my first country fair,” said Mrs. Dougherty on July 27. “I love it, just love it. I Saturday, August 11 1 - 4 p.m. can’t believe the number Located in the Regional Park of (exhibit) entries they 7KHUHZLOOEHJDPHVUHIUHVKPHQWVDQGIUHHWRXUV have.” Besides the horse show, Mrs. Dougherty Jim and Donna Dougherty from St. Marys, Ont., check out some enjoyed the many quilt of the quilts entered as exhibits during the Abernethy Fair. entries submitted, while her husband appreciated the woodcarvings. It works really well be- family and former neigh- “It’s great,” added Mr. cause I can satisfy my bours. As a young girl, Dougherty. need to bake and they she took part in the pa- There were 125 exhib- can be happy because rade and horse shows, itors — from age two to they have things to eat.” while she entered her 80 — from across Can- Having helped orga- homework and baking Movie sponsored by ada and Ireland who sub- nize the fair in the past, into the exhibition. mitted more than 1,300 Penny noted this year’s “Pie baking among items into this year’s Abernethy Fair has men is taking off and exhibition, both a new changed; this year is the becoming quite compet- (306) 728-5715 record. Some items dis- biggest fair yet.