Lodge, aboriginal group head to mediation for unpaid bills

Staff at Misty Lake Lodge are hoping mediation will help them sort out a dispute over unpaid hotel bills for flood evacuees.

Until recently, Misty Lake housed about 65 evacuees from Lake St. Martin and Little Saskatchewan First Nations.

MANFF was tasked with dispersing federal funds to Manitoba evacuees but has yet to pay a massive bill to Misty Lake.

Rytha Dykes, general manager at Misty Lake Lodge, said she checked with Manitobas Emergency Measures Organization and discoveredthe province had already paid MANFF for the lodges invoices the very ones that MANFF has been slow to settle.

About $72 million has been advanced since the onset of the flood to MANFF in order to keep cash flowing to evacuees, but it doesnt watch how the money is spent thats done in a federal audit, which hasnt happened yet.

"They received government dollars to care of the evacuees," she said.

"We know theyve received the funds."

Dykes said in light of that information, the hotels owner met with MANFF on Monday to discuss the bill but nothing was resolved.

"Wed like MANFF to have some sort of transparency, explaining whats happened with the funds," said Dykes.

Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada said they are now arranging for mediation, which Dykes hopes will provide answers.