Nebraska Supreme Court denied Irrigation District right to charge rent to lake tenants; Now Court without comment upholds Dist Judge Murphy's ruling that Power District cannnot even terminate the leases; Power district loses bid to end leases at Jeffrey Lake The Associated Press The Central Nebraska Public Power and Irrigation District has lost its bid to charge rent for its property around Jeffrey Lake. The Nebraska Supreme Court, without comment, on Friday upheld an injunction issued earlier by Lincoln County District Judge John Murphy preventing the district from terminating the leases on the lots where 115 homes have been built. “The court, in effect, has deeded this property to the homeowners,” said district spokesman Tim Anderson. The case involved the land around Jeffrey Lake south of Brady. Homeowners originally signed the leases, which require 30 years’ notice to cancel, decades ago. The district owns the land and leases home sites to Jeffrey Lake Development Inc., which in turn subleases to homeowners. In 2001, the high court ruled that Jeffrey Lake homeowners did not have to pay rent for their lots. That ruling upheld a lower court decision that the homeowners have paid the equivalent of rent to the district by maintaining and improving the land. The 2001 high court decision upheld a ruling by Murphy, who said that the homeowners’ maintenance of the lake, cooperation with the state Game and Parks Commission, shore stabilization projects and lot improvements have benefited the power district and that those improvements meet the lease obligations. Murphy noted that the district contributed materials, funds, expertise and labor to help the homeowners, and that it made no sense for the district to claim that the homeowners had been “violating the public policy of the state while continually participating in the maintenance and enhancement of the facilities.” In the 2001 high court ruling, Judge Michael McCormack said that even if state law required rent to be collected on the properties, “such rent would not necessarily have to be cash rent. Because consideration as given in exchange for the leasehold interests, we find that the leases are not gifts.” Anderson said homeowners at the district’s Johnson Lake and Lake McConaughy are charged annual rent equal to 5 percent of the appraised value of their lot. He estimated that charging rent for the Jeffrey Lake lots could generate about $1,000 a lot, or $115,000 a year. “We think it’s a fairness issue,” he said. Gothenburg attorney Steve Windrum, who represented the cabin owners, was not in his office Friday and could not be reached to comment. Irrigation districts are political subdivisions of the state and are organized under a 1933 law aimed at developing irrigation and electric power systems.