My daughter recently went to Sikome Lake in southeast Calgary with her friend and it cost them $5 each to enjoy the public facility..The lake had, prior to Rachel Notley taking power in 2015, been free to all Albertans visiting Fish Creek Provincial Park..There are other artificial lakes in the city, of course, but they're private and not accessible to us rubes. Sikome Lake was the only retreat in Calgary where families could come together and enjoy the short summer season without belonging to a community association or paying fees at city-subsidized pools..Calgarians should be allowed to swim for free in the only publicly available lake. We’re not situated on the West Coast, where access to swimming areas is easy, but if the provincial government can provide free drug treatment, it can allow Calgarians to get their feet wet and play in the sand..We were told that the fees would support improvements to Sikome Lake, yet there’s no evidence of that. The same tired facilities still exist, despite the picking of taxpayer pockets..My daughter and her friend bought two hotdogs and nachos during their short stay at the lake. Imagine the money that’s being brought in by visitors to the vendors on a busy day. Such purchases must generate a tremendous amount of income that otherwise would not be earned..If you build a lake, they will come, it’s said. Or, the government will charge you to use a publicly funded facility and allow vendors to extort the swimmers for mediocre treats..The NDP, which introduced the fee, is making a big deal about a recently introduced charge to enjoy Kananaskis Country. The NDP has been going on and on about the $90-yearly levy, despite the fact it purposely denied many Calgarians free access to its only safe and protected watery getaway, Sikome Lake..The NDP is more concerned about the urban elite who wish to stomp about in the mountains than it is with young families wanting to enjoy a day at the beach. The political party bets it will get more votes from the teacher and her nurse husband who visit Kananaskis, than the single mom who works at McDonalds and wants a bit of cool-water respite with her children at Sikome Lake..Free access to the mountains is far more important than a dip in Sikome Lake, the NDP suggests..Even today, there are no lifeguards at Sikome Lake to ensure the safety of patrons, just peace officers. What do the peace officers do: cramp the fun of someone enjoying a beer?.Meanwhile, in some city parks, drinking alcohol is permitted..Notley says the Kananaskis fee is unfair and if re-elected, she would scrap the levy. She says the charge is particularly harsh on low-income families..“Our view is that these parks should be used by all Albertans and should be available to all Albertans regardless of the amount of money that they have,” she said..Hmm. She never thought that about Sikome Lake and the low-income families that might like to refresh themselves..In 2016, after the fees were introduced, the opposition party said the number of visitors plummeted. That is likely the case today, too..The lake, which opened in 1978, used to welcome up to 20,000 visitors a day..The current government should right the NDP’s leftists’ wrong. The Dippers made a mistake and the United Conservative Party has an opportunity to take the high ground..Remove the tax on Sikome Lake. The fee reflects poorly on both the NDP, which imposed it, and the United Conservative Party, which perpetuates poor policy..David Marsden is a columnist for the Western Standard. He served as managing editor of the Red Deer Advocate and editorial page editor of the Calgary Herald, as well as several British Columbia publications.
