Cabin owners at the Hidden Valley Resort have until October of next year to vacate their property after members of the Siksika Nation voted not to renew their lease.
The resort, about an hour east of Calgary, consists of a golf course, a man-made lake and about 300 cabins.
It has co-existed with the reserve for 38 years, with cabin owners paying an annual fee.
In a referendum Wednesday on a new 50-year leasing agreement, 70% of the 900 band members who turned out, voted ‘no’, even though the deal would have meant $17 million in revenue for the Siksika over the course of the lease.
Each property owner would have made an upfront deposit of $18,000 with additional yearly payments of $750, indexed to inflation after five years.
However, some band members were unhappy with the agreement and forced the referendum.
Sisika councillor Reynold Medicine Traveller, who helped negotiate the deal, says the band council will meet to discuss its next step.
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