Wakes, water quality draw crowd to lakes meeting
When the Joint Advisory Committee on Lakes met last week, the audience section of the Country Club board room was almost full. Members were concerned with dangerous wakes, algae in the lakes, and water quality, but there was one woman who came to offer help.
The first speaker during the open forum was a Master Naturalist. Grace Turley said her organization is looking for places to volunteer.
Like Master Gardeners, Master Naturalists take classes to learn about their field and then volunteer to help others, she explained. She left her contact information with the committee for future projects.
Member Chuck Lefflar was on hand to complain about the water on Loch Lomond which, he said, looks worse than Lake Bella Vista. He told the committee that his home is on the market and potential buyers have cited the appearance of the lake as a reason to not purchase. He said the Lakes Department has blamed the issue on equipment failure and questioned why there isn’t a larger budget to replace equipment.
After the meeting, John Urquhart said that the problem was actually just a series of bad luck. First, the boat needed repairs, then the sprayer was broken. It takes time to get parts, he explained.
Two members asked the committee about the use of wake boats on Loch Lomond. Wake boats are designed to throw up a large wake which wake boarders can jump, but the wakes travel to the edge of the lake and can damage docks and sea walls.
Susan Gibson said a wake hit her dock so hard that she was knocked into the lake. She told the committee that she plans to circulate a petition calling for wake boats to be prohibited.
Committee Chairman Rick York said the committee researched wake boats last year and determined that there was no reason to take action. As long as the wake boats stay in the center of the lake, as they should according to POA regulations, the wakes should not cause damage. He promised to share the information the committee found about the issue.
Charlie Phillips, who lives on Lake Ann, asked the committee to move the no-wake zone so his shoreline isn’t eroded by wakes. Jerry Young, also a Lake Ann resident, expressed concern about the clarity of the water.
A Lake Windsor resident, Paul Williamson, asked when his lake would be lowered. He said he needs to plan for maintenance to his sea wall. General Manager Tom Judson explained that the committee agreed to consider all lakes for drawdowns each spring, rather than use the seven-year schedule that had been in place. In April 2018, Judson said, Windsor will be considered and the decision will be published in POA emails and on the website.
After the open forum, the committee considered changes to a brochure that describes the rules about lake use. Adding information about how close a boat can get to a dock will help with the wake-boat controversy, the committee agreed. Rules about registering boats and displaying the tags are also covered in the brochure.
Marketing Director Kim Carlson is working with the Lakes Department and promised to consult the POA attorney and complete the brochure rewrite. It will be printed in house so it’s not an expensive project, she said.