Chris Clegg
South Peace News

Organizers of the Treaty 8 First Nations Cup Hockey Tournament saved over $120 per hour in ice rental fees by playing in Slave Lake rather than High Prairie the last two years.

Documents forwarded to South Peace News indicate the Town of High Prairie’s offer was $181.50 per hour including GST whereas the Town of Slave Lake’s offer was $54 per hour. It is not known if the price includes GST. Given the $54 offer, the difference between the two offers on ice rental was $127.50 per hour.

Based on 50 hours of ice rental, the savings to Treaty 8 organizers was $6,375. At 60 hours the savings rises to $7,650 and at 70 hours $8,925. It is not a reach to suggest Treaty 8 organizers saved over $15,000 in ice rental fees the last two years.

Treaty 8 organizer Clyde Goodswimmer called Slave Lake’s offer a “sweetheart” deal. He also added High Prairie’s offer made the committee feel “unwelcome” in town.

In the spring of 2023, Treaty 8 met with the recreation committee’s Ramona Rollins and asked for a deal on ice rental. She informed them of the $181.50 per hour rate. When asked if there any room to negotiate, Rollins replied no, because the rates were written into a fees bylaw.

Treaty 8 then talked to the Town of Slave Lake, who made the discounted $54 per hour, which is the youth tournament ice rental rate, not adult rate. In their case, officials from the Town of Slave Lake quickly met and decided on a special rate whereas High Prairie did not. Treaty 8 organizers quickly signed a two-year agreement and realized big savings.

High Prairie Mayor Brian Panasiuk said after news broke that the tournament was going to Slave Lake that “We did everything we could. I don’t know what else we could have done.”

However, Goodswim- mer said that Panasiuk, not any member of council, ever met with Treaty 8 organizers like Slave Lake did. Panasiuk never denied not meeting with the group.

“The rates (in High Prairie) were outrageous,” said Goodswim- mer. “From 8 a.m. to midnight, No breaks.

“We said we can’t do this,” he added.

It is when Treaty 8 organizers went looking elsewhere and approached Slave Lake.

“They (Slave Lake) gave us minor hockey rates, a really good deal,” says Goodswimmer.

“A sweetheart deal.

“We did not want to leave High Prairie but they forced us out.”

High Prairie town council says they did try to reach out to Treaty 8 organizers in the spring of 2023 after the meeting with Rollins, but Slave Lake acted quickly and signed the two-year deal. Negotiations and High Prairie’s lack of enthusiasm to offer a deal left Treaty 8 organizers with bitter feelings and they never met with High Prairie, having already signed a two-year deal with Slave Lake which met their satisfaction.

Two other issues were later revealed. Once was that High Prairie town council was sitting on a community fund that in the spring of 2023 has $32,000 unspent. Not one penny was offered to help Treaty 8 offset ice rates despite the hundreds of thousands of dollars in economic benefit to the town. According to the policy, any donation can be initiated by any member of council.

Panasiuk’s comment that, “We did everything we could” never addressed possible use of the fund.

Council was questioned why they did not use the fund and replied they never received a request but policy allows them to initiate a donation. Or at the very least, if council truly wanted to find a way to support the event, they could have changed policy, but they never met to do so.

Next, the joint recreation committee came up with a “tournament rate” but to this day, Goodswimmer says he has never made aware of the tournament rate.

Town of HP CAO Bill McKennan revealed the rate in an email July 15.

“Council at its meeting held on Feb. 13, 2024, approved the following for tournaments: regular rate for the first 16 hours, then for additional hours be charged either $108/hour for adults or $77/hour for youth.”

The $108 per hour adult fee is ironically exactly double what Slave Lake’s $54 per hour offer was two years ago.

Panasiuk insists “We did everything we could” but yet it took almost one year (the spring of 2023 to Feb. 13, 2024) for council to act and pass a tournament rate.

South Peace News asked Panasiuk in a July 10 email why he did not advise Treaty 8 organizers of the tournament rate but he did not address the matter in his July 13 response. Panasiuk also did not address the question of why he has never met with Treaty 8 organizers. He has had the opportunity since the spring of 2023 to take the lead in negotiations.

Despite all the issues, Goodswimmer says the tournament might return to High Prairie.

“The doors are open,” says Goodswimmer. “High Prairie is central. Fans like coming to High Prairie.

“But we have to talk to the Town. There are issues we have to talk about.”

I have reached out to a Treaty 8 organizer,” Panasiuk wrote in a July 13 email, but did not disclose who.

“I do not want to say much publicly at this time to ensure future discussions are not impacted.”

Another Treaty 8 organizer spoke to South Peace News on the condition of anonymity. He said, given the past efforts of town council and the way they were treated, he felt it very unlikely the tournament would return to High Prairie until a new council is elected.