Come out to our Annual Community BBQ on Monday, September 4, 2017 at noon at Loney’s Point.  In the event of poor weather, it will take place at the Sand Point Quonset.  We will also be celebrating Canada’s 150 with a special cake and free souvenir pins.  Mark this date on your calendars!

The Village office will be closed Thursday, August 24th and will reopen on Tuesday, August 29th.

Public Notice for Zoning Bylaw Amendment

Effective Wednesday, August 9:  Open fires are now being permitted but fireworks are still not permitted within the Village.

With the circulation of misinformation within the Village and surrounding area within the last month, we as a Council need to provide the facts regarding the 2017 property taxes of the Resort Village of South Lake.

1. The new property valuation reassessments, the provincial taxable assessment and the education mill rate are all set by a provincial agency (SAMA), the provincial government and the local school division. The Village has NO input in this process.
2. The education mill rate for 2016 was 5.03; 2017 mill rate is 4.12.
3. All property taxes ARE NOT increasing 23%. This information is INCORRECT. Please call the Village office for an estimate on your 2017 taxes as this is the only accurate way you will know what they will be. Tax notices should be mailed out the first week of July.
4. As of January 1, 2017, the provincial government increased the taxable assessment value from 70% to 80%.
5. SAMA has reassessed all properties in Saskatchewan. All property owners had the right to file an appeal of their property assessments based on the notice received in April. The deadline was June 1, 2017 as set by SAMA. Very few appeals were filed but the majority of the ones that were filed have been successful. A revaluation year will occur again in 2021.
6. Due to the new information received from the Water Security Agency in regards to land spreading for sewage haulers and the extension of their current ‘Waste Management Plan’, Council has set the mill rate for 2017 at 5.3 which was 7 in 2016. Some residents will see a decrease in the taxes due to the lower mill rate, some may stay the same and others will see an increase due to the SAMA reassessment.
7. The following is a quote from Kelly Neuert with the Water Security Agency: “I encourage the council of the Resort Village of South Lake and other municipalities in the area to continue in the recent efforts to develop an approved wastewater disposal facility.”
8. We will still be offering a 15% discount on the municipal portion of your taxes if they are paid by September 30, 2017. This discount option has actually been removed by many Villages, Towns and Rural Municipalities.
9. The base tax increased from $125.00 to $175.00 to cover the huge increase in the Village’s fire retainer set by the City of Moose Jaw phased in over the last 3 years. If the Village does not pay for this, a fire truck would not go to South Lake if a 9-1-1 call was made.
10. The full financial statement is always available to ratepayers in the office, as it has been in previous years. The new website is up to date with minutes to view after they have been adopted and approved at the following month’s council meeting.