Being in N. MN, I have the luxury to hunt thousands of acres of state forest lands and paper company properties. The properties are open because in return for letting the public on the land, they get a tax break.
I don't have the problem you speak of, but more lands around game refuges and elsewhere are being leased here. It started about 12-15 years ago where when asked if one can hunt there, the answer was no because the land was being leased by another hunter(s). I recall one property I really wish I could hunt on... the owner said it was being leased for $500 a year. That was about 15 years ago. Just a few years after that, I heard through the grape-vine, that the same guy was now paying a $1,000 a year to have that lease. It was 80 acres.
iSnipe