The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Creighton won't be sending its firefighters to cottage country near Flin Flon, a decision that once again leaves cabin residents searching for fire protection. Creighton town council has turned down the North of 54 Cottage Owners Association's request to provide fire service in exchange for at least $30,000 a year. 'We didn't feel that we were able or ready to commit to a formal agreement to the provide (fire) services to them,' said Mayor Bruce Fidler. Mayor Fidler said town council's responsibility to 'look after our residents first' was a concern, as was the likelihood of increased insurance costs from deploying firefighters outside of their normal coverage area. Creighton's decision comes after Cranberry Portage also rejected a proposal to provide fire coverage to the cottage subdivisions. But Ian McKay, co-chair of the cottage association, has not thrown in the towel on securing deals with either Creighton or Cranberry Portage. 'We still would like to pursue it a little further with Creighton and Cranberry (Portage),' McKay said. 'We just dealt with them through correspondence. We haven't had a sit-down meeting with them to explain it in full, so maybe that's our next step.' Mayor Fidler did not rule out further talks. 'If it was brought back, we'd look at it again, but at this point (the answer is no),' said Mayor Fidler. Flin Flon revoked fire service from cottage country on July 1 after cottage association reps turned down the city's asking price of $300 a year for every road-accessible cottage. Flin Flon had long sent firefighters to cottage blazes even though neither a funding agreement nor a legal obligation existed. Manitoba Conservation provides limited fire service to area cottagers in the summer, but the recent seasonal closure of Bakers Narrows Provincial Park leaves cabin owners lacking even that modest level of protection. McKay said cottagers have been talking with the Manitoba government about securing a fire protection deal. 'Unwilling' The cottage association would still speak with the City of Flin Flon directly, McKay said, 'but it seems like they're unwilling to move off that $300' asking price. Asked what a more reasonable amount would be, McKay cited cottagers outside The Pas, who pay between $50 and $75 a year for fire protection from that municipality. 'You know, why should we pay $300? It's the same sort of arrangement,' McKay said. Flin Flon Mayor George Fontaine said the city's asking price is based on what upper-level homes in Flin Flon would pay for fire protection. Most homes in the cottage subdivisions are equivalent to high-end homes in Flin Flon, Mayor Fontaine said, even though cottages are not assessed for taxation purposes. Mayor Fontaine said The Pas' agreements with surrounding cottagers were 'set in a pattern that was established a long time ago' and that if those deals were developed today, The Pas would 'absolutely' charge more. Flin Flon is not negotiable on its asking price of $300 per cottage, Mayor Fontaine said. See 'Unsure' on pg. Continued from pg. Aside from possible face-to-face meetings with Creighton and Cranberry Portage officials, McKay said he's not sure where things go from here for cottagers. 'We're still going to attempt to pursue (fire service) down the road here, so we'll see where that goes,' said McKay. The Town of The Pas has four separate fire service agreements with surrounding cottagers. The largest of those arrangements, with the Rural Municipality of Kelsey, provides fire coverage to somewhere between 400 and 500 households. The RM of Kelsey pays The Pas a yearly fee of $30,000 _ which works out to $60 to $75 per household. The RM covers the tab from its overall tax revenue, so residents pay no direct fee to The Pas. A second agreement sees the cottagers of Clearwater Lake Provincial Park, along with the provincial government, pay The Pas an annual fee of $28,000. The deal covers 363 cottages, meaning the deal is worth $77 per cottage. Yet cottagers themselves only pay $55 each for the service. The remaining $22 _ about $8,000 when all cottagers are factored in _ comes from Manitoba Conservation and Water Stewardship. A provincial spokesperson said the province 'provides funding support for fire suppression, but only in provincial parks.' The Pas also has two fire service agreements with cabin owners' associations _ Rocky Lake North Shore and Rocky Lake East Shore. In both cases, cottagers pay The Pas $50 per lot, per year. All four agreements are extremely detailed, spelling out, for instance, the conditions under which The Pas may refuse to supply fire protection. If the fire chief or his designate decides the firefighting resources are needed in The Pas or elsewhere, the town has a right not to respond.
