December update

Season's Greetings,

It's been a while since my last update.  Our lake neighbors John Cretzmeyer and Barb Jacobson have been in print lately for their extravagant Christmas lights.  This is their last year.  If you haven't driven past their house on the west side of the lake in the last 10 years, you need to do it. It is spectacular.

I took this photo a few years ago.

(click on photo to enlarge)

The White Bear Lake water level lawsuit appears to have taken the next step.  The city of White Bear Lake still needs to sign off at their next council meeting.  Funding is going to be interesting.  Lots of money involved.  Basically, the agreement is to use the Mississippi River for the water source, instead of city wells.  The state legislature needs to deal with the funding.  The latest from the Press Publication is here.

I had an interesting discussion with lake resident Ted Jagger about the WBL water level problem.  Many of you may remember a few years ago that there was a company tasked with running a sewage treatment pipe past Bald Eagle Lake.  In the process, they ran into a lot of water that they had to pump out.  In the end they pumped literally billions of gallons of water (up to 4,000 gallons a minute) out of the watershed and into the storm water system.  To both of us, this seems to have coincided with a significant drop in the water level on White Bear Lake.  It was in the news in the beginning of all of this discussion, but it seems to have fallen off the radar. See this article in the Pioneer Press from 2011 (written by John Brewer). (John's parents live on the lake.)  Will White Bear Lake recover, since there is no longer any pumping in this manner?  Time will tell. I hope so.  It's a treasure for our community.

In the end, though, the DNR believes that we have a long term problem of over using the watershed and it is best to begin the process of moving to surface water for our water source.

The Bald Eagle Island house made the news this week, also, but not because of the development.  Apparently three young (16, 14, 13) teenage delinquents were involved.  This is the second break-in in the last year.  From Hans Stachowiak:  "I was present when the police arrested them, there were no regrets, no"sorry" to hear from the kids, the level of violence and damage was unbelievable. We needed three days to repair and clean up the house."

The son of a friend of Nick & Jane is now living there to help prevent future occurrences.

As far as the island development is concerned, Hans' next hurdle is a planning commission meeting on Wednesday, December 17 at 7:00pm at Heritage Hall to discuss the needed variances and Conditional Use Permit.

The RCWD has a new newsletter.  We still don't know who will replace Harley Ogata on the board.  They might have made a decision at yesterday's meeting.

If any of you are interested in getting a 2015 calendar of Bald Eagle Lake sunsets taken by me last year, I have put together a collection of photos and put it out on Lulu.com for anyone to purchase.  It is a large high quality calendar and I am pretty much offering it for pennies mark-up.

Here is a sample of the pictures included.

(click on photo to enlarge)

Have a great time with family and friends over the holidays.

Regards,
Jim

Zebra Mussels in White Bear Lake

I forgot to mention in my last blog post information that I received from Matt Kocian of RCWD earlier this month.

Hi Jim,

As I’m sure you've heard, zebra mussels were found in White Bear Lake this fall.  Based on the spatial distribution (found at multiple locations around the lake), it’s likely that the introduction occurred 1 or more years ago.  This is the first time that zebra mussels have been found in the RCWD.  I expect DNR will continue boat inspections at both White Bear and Bald Eagle to prevent the spread of zebra mussels via boat.  However, it’s also important for lake shore owners to be vigilant about docks, lifts, and other lake shore equipment.  The DNR has some info for lake residents here:  http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/shoreland_owners.html. 

Thanks

Matt

Update on the Island development and Dam development

Regarding the Dam project and according to the Hugo City Council Meeting of Nov 3rd:

1. Total project cost = $640K
2. Grant received from MNDOT = $252K
3. MN DNR has agreed to a grant = $160K
4. Remaining cost of $228K to be split between the RCWD and Hugo.
5. RCWD has committed to $113K.
6. Hugo to attempt to get funding from St Paul Water Utility and communities surrounding the lake.
7. This was approved by the Hugo City Council at this meeting.

So, that's great news.  I suspect that we will see construction begin after the water goes down next spring.  It is probably too optimistic to think that it will take place this winter.  Time will tell.

Island project

The island project has been approved by the Township board.  It will now move to the planning commission for further discussions and approvals.  The White Bear Press has an article in today's paper on the meeting and decision.

'Tis the end of my sunset photos for the season. I have collected all of my sunset photos for 2014 and placed them in an online album on them on Flickr if you would like to view them.

Have a great day,

Jim

Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) and Town Board Election

Greetings,

I just received a call from Harley Ogata.  Harley lives on Hugo Rd. Harley has been on the board for the RCWD.  In his tenure he has helped to guide the Alum treatment, the Oneka Ridge golf course re-use irrigation project and the dam replacement.   He has served us well!

Harley is resigning from the board.  Harley has represented Ramsey County, so we need someone from Ramsey County to step up and volunteer for the board.  You will need to decide quickly, the decision will be in November.  Harley would be glad to talk to anyone that is interested in taking on this role.  You can contact Harley at: 653-0885

I think you can also contact Phil Belfiori at:

Email:

 pbelfiori@ricecreek.org

Phone:

 (763) 398-3071

I took this photo on my way home from work.  It is the little lake next to the Gateway trail crossing on Hwy 96.  The sunset couldn't have been lined up any better and it just looked spectacular. Good thing I had my camera.

(click photo to enlarge)

(The following is only relevant to White Bear Township residents.)

On another note, I was trying to find out who is running for a spot on the White Bear Township board.  It took me a while, but I finally found the info. There are two seats open.  Seat A and Seat B.  People running for seat A are:

- Kevin Chandler

- Ronald J. Denn

- Steve Ruzek

For Seat B, Robert Kermes is unopposed.

I know very little about these candidates.  But, I do know that one of our neighbors is hosting a meet and greet for Steve Ruzek.  Tom Fiutak and his wife, Colet are hosting the gathering at 5770 West Bald Eagle Blvd, next Sunday evening, the 26th. 6:30  - 7:30pm.  If you are interested in finding out more about Steve, you can contact Tom at 651-724-1822 or.

I wouldn't have normally announced this, but I would hate for any of us to be ignorant of the candidates when we get our ballot.

I got to the sample ballot for my location via: http://xnet.co.ramsey.mn.us/elections/precinct_finder/ , then clicked on the sample ballot.

Obviously, if you don't live in WBT or Ramsey County this won't be of much interest for you.

Regards,

Jim Moore

Fall colors & Bald Eagle Island

Fall colors are amazing this year, so I went out last weekend to find some beautiful sights to photograph.  I have a favorite road just north of H2 on Centerville, in North Oaks.  It was prime last weekend.  I also drove around the neighborhoods near Pine Tree Lake (east of White Bear Lake) and found some beautiful settings to photograph.

Then on Tuesday, I brought my camera to work so that I could take some pictures in the evening in Stillwater and along Hwy 96.  I have been wanting to take pictures on this route in the fall since I started working in Somerset almost two years ago.  But last fall was such a bust for fall colors that I didn't see anything worth photographing.  Finally, this year's colors are amazing.  I don't think I have ever seen more beautiful fall colors.

So... This link will get you to my favorite shots of my two shoots.  Hope you enjoy.

Here's one of them:

On a Bald Eagle Island development front, the proposed development got a tie vote from the planning commission.  The next big event for this project is before the Town Board.

Public Hearing on the Bald Eagle Island Project

Nov. 3rd at 7:00 p.m. at Heritage Hall.

This could be an emotionally charged event.  If you want to have a say in whether it passes or not, I suggest you make it a point to attend.  I suspect it will be standing room only.

Regards,

Jim Moore

President, BEAA

Great news: Bald Eagle Dam update

I received some good news in an email from board member Jim Aschman, yesterday. 

Jim wrote:

I attended the RCWD (Rice Creek Watershed District) meeting today. They had a discussion on the Bald Eagle Lake dam replacement. It seems that the DNR is going to fund $160k and RCWD is going to kick in $120K.  Hugo is expected to leave in their $120K.  With MNDOT contributing $252K, we have a total dam fund of $652K. The updated construction estimate is $637,263.  Hugo needs to accept the grant at their meeting, probably on Oct. 22.  Should be a go for next year.

 

On another note:

If some of you still have your boat lift with canopy in the water and the seagulls are loving it, you might want to consider getting the Gull Buster.  It is a small local company.  The seagulls were loving my canopy several years ago and made an absolute mess of it.  I've had the Gull Buster for two years now and the canopy is as clean as can be.  It has four extendable diagonal posts and you run fishing line around the 4 posts and diagonal across the posts.  I can still take the canopy off without removing it.

Photo (click on image to enlarge):

This was taken in my front yard on Sept 15th.

 

A fall photo from the bluffs near Lake Pepin, taken last weekend (not anywhere near peak colors):

 

Regards,

Jim

Update on a number of subjects

Bald Eagle Island

I came across a few items this week that might be of interest to you.  I happened upon an article on the potential future owner of the island (Hans) just posted on the White Bear Press page.  It looks like Hans is moving forward with his plans.

Purple Loosestrife

It turns out that there hasn't been much progress on it this year.  I do know that there are some biological measures that we can take via a beetle that eats the plant.  These beetles have to be collected from other sites where they exist and then transplanted to our infestation.  This will need to happen in June or July when the beetles are most active.

From Rice Creek Watershed's Facebook page

Rice Creek Watershed District

September 22

DNR Aquatic Invasive Species Specialist Keegan Lund examines an aquatic plant sampling rake held by RCWD District Technician Catherine Nester on Bald Eagle Lake. The RCWD and DNR recently collaborated to complete a plant survey on Bald Eagle Lake. Water clarity has been markedly better on Bald Eagle Lake this year, in large part due to the spring application of aluminum sulfate (“alum”). With increased water clarity, the RCWD and DNR hopes to find an increase in native aquatic vegetation – especially at deeper depths. The results of the survey are being complied, but early indications are promising. While on Bald Eagle, the DNR and RCWD also worked to remove (by hand) an invasive plant – flowering rush.

Horseshoe cattail bed concern

This is the large cattail bed east of the island in the middle of the lake.  Concern was espressed that this bed has been getting smaller.  I happen to have a few pictures from 1945, which show the cattail bed to be pretty much the same size. So, I don't think there is any change in its size.

And, of course... A Bald Eagle Lake sunset.

I happened to be canoeing in Quetico Provincial Park in August and took this photo at McAree Lake.

Click an any of the images to get a larger version.

Regards,

Jim

Huge flock of Purple Martins roosting on Bald Eagle Lake

I'm not sure if this is an annual event, or the first time.  We happened to be out on the lake this weekend near the horse shoe shaped weed bed on the lake.  There were several thousand Purple Martins bedding down for the night. But, prior to bedding down, from 7:55 to 8:15, the sky was thick with them as they were flying in waves overhead and they even zoomed right through our pontoon boat. In the end, they came to roost like squadrons, hundreds at a time. There was a huge whoosh as each squadron swooped in. It was an amazing sight.  We were right up against the weed bed and had front row seats.  Last night was our second night watching it.

This video doesn't do it justice.  It's tough to really capture the experience.

The DNR has delayed their visit to the lake with regards to the Purple Loosestrife.  I'll post an update at a later date.

Regards,
Jim

Purple Loosestrife

Greetings,

We just got off the lake tonight and it was a beautiful and quiet evening on the water.  There was a rainstorm and it cleared up quickly. As a result, there were no big boats or waves to disturb us.  There was no wind to push us around.  We  were just enjoying the setting sun and relaxing.  The temperature was perfect.  Just awesome and no one else figured it out! (except a few fisherman).

"If you're lucky enough to live on a lake, you're lucky enough."

Earlier this week, I saw some pictures of Purple Loosestrife (PLS), which is a beautiful purple flow that grows on in marshes.  The problem is that it replaces the cattails and prevents wildlife from entering.  It is an invasive plant introduce from Europe and threatens our marshes.  It is now in full bloom and it has a significant footing on the north end of the lake.  I have also seen it at the end of Bald Eagle Point, near the boat launch and on the south shore of the Benson Bay neighborhood.

I am in communications with the DNR to determine the best course of action to control the plant.  They will be out on the lake this week to get a better picture of the infestation.

There are three approaches and we may use all three.  We can control with weed killer (variant of Roundup), manual removal and beetles that eat the plants and keep it under control (not eliminate it).

If you see the plant in your vicinity and can remove it, that would be great.  They recommend not even composting it. It is best to throw it in the garbage.

I checked the water clarity this weekend.  It was 5.5 ft.  Still pretty awesome

Sunset tonight

 

Take care,

Jim Moore

Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD) Project at Oneka Ridge Golf Course

Greetings,

RCWD presented the Oneka Ridge golf course project on Friday and the Pioneer Press was their to report on it.

I haven't checked the lake clarity, lately, but it look like it's holding steady.  The aquatic plants have sure enjoyed the increased sunlight. The crop is very healthy this year.

Here are a couple more sunset photos (click on photo to enlarge):

This one was taken last night on Devil's Lake near Webster, WI

 

Twilight tonight on Devil's Lake

 

BEAA - Dam issue update 7/30/2014

Greetings,

The White Bear Press finally published the article on the dam meeting between government agencies that I mentioned in an earlier update. 

If you don't get the paper, you can read it here:

http://www.presspubs.com/quad/news/article_b84c38ca-1732-11e4-8333-0019bb2963f4.html

Water clarity update:

The lake was nice and calm this time.  Not sure if that had an impact, but I measured 7.5 ft. (last time it was windy and clarity was 5.5 ft).

Sunsets photos from last week:

Both of these were from the same sunset.  The second one was about 1/2 hour after sunset.

(Click to see larger image)

Regards,

Jim Moore

(Click on photo to enlarge)

Saturday's clouds over Hugo

BEAA update - Aquifer (WBL) meeting and Milfoil problem

Greetings,

Interested in the current options for White Bear Lake's water problems?

Meeting at 6 p.m. tonight (7/24/2014) at Century College: Met Council study puts price tag on northeast metro water fix.

http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_26203545/met-council-study-puts-price-tag-northeast-metro

Eurasian watermilfoil:

As reported by Dave Sorenson, Eurasian watermilfoil is jamming up the bay at Bald Eagle Point. Dave has talked to our fresh water expert, Steve McComas, about this issue.  The RCWD has a plant survey planned for Bald Eagle on Monday.  Steve will provide a plant summary on his finding.  I will forward this info when I receive it. I know we have had Eurasian watermilfoil in the lake for many years, but it hasn't been as much of a problem most years.  I guess our native weeds have kept it at bay most years.  I remember talking with Nick Van Brunt (island owner) about this some years ago. He was involved with chemically treating an infestation more than 20 years ago. He said they simply sprayed 2,4-D on the surface to kill the plants.  DNR permits are required and there are grant programs to fund it.

This article says that 2,4-D is very effective at selectively killling milfoil and not native plants, which is good news: http://www.ecy.wa.gov/programs/wq/plants/management/24dstrategies.html

Bob Weisenburger:

Bob died on July 19th from heart failure.  My condolences to his family. Bob was on the White Bear Township board for 28 years and was a great man and great asset to our community.  He will be greatly missed.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/twincities/obituary.aspx?pid=171823086

Sunday's reading on water clarity is 5 1/2 ft.

Recent sunset photos (click on photo to enlarge):

Stay tuned.

Regards,

Jim Moore

BEAA President

In the midst of summer - News on the dam reconstruction and more sunset photos.

Greetings,

The water is still really flowing out of the outlet on the north end of the lake.  It's a good thing Hugo dumped the rocks behind the dam or we may have seen a failure this summer.  Thanks to Jim Aschman for suggesting it to Hugo.  It looks like it was money well spent.
Rick Gwynn stopped by last week to report on the latest news on the dam project.  Rick attended a meeting at Hugo City hall, which was attended by Hugo staff and council, our state representative and senator, representatives from the DNR, the Rice Creek Watershed District board, and representatives from the surrounding counties and cities.

In the end, there is now a very high probability that the rebuild of the dam will occur this winter.  It looks like the Rice Creek Watershed District  board will support funding part of the dam costs and the DNR has some funds to fill in the rest.  The RCWD also pointed out a little known state statute that says that state must take ownership of abandoned dams.  The DNR said that they would investigate.  It was also stated that Hugo was now interested in taking ownership of the dam.  So, more news will follow as this develops.

The latest lake clarity reading by lake resident Mike Doran was 7'.  My last reading was a week ago and it was shy of 8'.

Looks like we're in for a few days of cold weather.  Enjoy!

Regards, Jim
A few more sunset photos:                                      (click to enlarge)

Water Clarity & 4th of July activities

Theft report:

• Last week I was informed, second hand, of a theft of a gas tank on the west side north of H2.  They apparently cut the gas line, also.

 Water Clarity:

• I measured the lake clarity last Sunday.  I measured 8' of clarity.

4th of July events to look for:

• Informal annual pontoon race, starting on the SW corner of the lake at 3pm.  It just sort of happens.  No one wants to take ownership.  It's pretty funny to see a bunch of pontoon boats racing around the island.
• Fireworks display at twilight in the SW corner of the lake.

Sunset on June 30th. (click for larger image)

Regards,
Jim

Tonight's sunset on Bald Eagle Lake

Here are a couple of pictures of tonight's sunset. The first one is through a windmill in the yard. I thought it was a nice composition. (Click on the photo for a larger image.) Cheers!

BEAA Quick update

All is quiet on the theft front.  No new thefts have been reported to me.

I tested the water quality yesterday.  The Secchi disk reading showed a small drop from 9.5 ft to 9 ft.  There is some noticeable algae in the water.  Still, the clarity is fabulous.  If we hadn't had the Alum treatment this spring and, with all the rain, I think we would be seeing an appreciable difference in the clarity.  Serious high water, now. The water is now touching the bottom of our dock.  There is at least one homeowner that went down to use their pontoon boat and they can't get it out from under their canopy because the water has come up so much.  Too bad we can't send some of this to California.

I also read that the Stillwater bridge is closing on Monday at 10 am, which is bad for me, because I work in Somerset, WI.  A 23 mile commute becomes a 42 mile commute.

It was a good day on Saturday sailing on an E Scow in a regularly organized event by the Bald Eagle Yacht Club (BEYC).  We sailed two races.  There are 6 E Scows on the lake, now.  A rather new group of boats.  They are sailed on Wed, Sat, & Sun. If your interested in joining the group as a boat owner or a crew member, they are always looking for additional members.  No sailing experience required.  Let me know and I can pass on your info.


We were on the lake Friday night and enjoyed a beautiful sunset.
(Click on a photo to get a larger image.)

No new news on the island development.

If you have anything you want others to hear about, let me know and I'll forward it on.

Regards,

Jim

Bald Eagle Lake watershed, water resource issues, and Carp

Lately, I have been asked about the size of the watershed.  I looked it up in the Bald Eagle Lake TMDL study, published in 2012.  According the the study, the watershed for our lake is about 10:1.  So, since our lake is about 1,000 acres, the watershed is 10,000 acres. The following image is from the TMDL study.  It shows our watershed outlined in red.

 

 ------------------------------------------------------------

 Tom Weyandt posted a few links on our Facebook page that might be of interest.

Since White Bear Lake's issues, there has been a more attention paid to water resources.  Here are the links Tom posted:

Four interesting articles about ground and surface water in our area.
http://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/04/28/ground-level-our-legacy-of-contamination?from=hp
http://blogs.mprnews.org/cities/2013/09/water-supplies-in-the-east-metro-by-the-numbers/
http://www.mprnews.org/story/2014/03/31/ground-level-beneath-the-surface-permits
http://minnesota.publicradio.org/projects/2014/01/ground-level-beneath-the-surface/

Tom also posted the following report:
                                                                                                                                             

Carp Forum April 28, 2014 Dr. Peter Sorenson, U of M Invasive Species Program
Dr. Sorenson started with a history of the spread of the common carp from the middle Europe region throughout the Roman Empire as a food source for the population and occupying Roman forces and then expanded further by Roman Catholics for the same purposes. Ultimately, carp was brought to the U. S. as a government attempt to provide food and sporting opportunities. First brought to Minnesota and stocked in Como Lake in the late 1870's. Interesting tidbit was that the railroad cars used to transport the stock had to be guarded to prevent theft.
Dr. Sorenson was adamant that past attempts at control such as commercial fishing, use of poison and draw downs haven’t worked in the past and as sole controls won’t work in the future. Carp can migrate significant distances, a single female can lay up to 3 million eggs, they grow up to 9 inches in the first year and can live as long as 60 years. Carp eat plant material and can dig up to 12 inches into a lake bed to seine out small material to eat.
His research over the past 8 years has shown that carp spawn in shallow areas of lakes and most importantly they migrate into shallow ponds in the spring. These ponds become nurseries, a refuge for the young of the year. In the winter the adult fish go out and spend time in very specific areas in deep water portions of adjoining lakes. Radio tagging of adults have shown that they use the same areas year after year. The fish disburse across the entire watershed in the summer.
Extensive work was done and Dr. Sorenson and his students were surprised to learn that they have not been able to find a single young of the year carp in the deep water lakes over many years of searching. While the carp do spawn in these lakes evidence has shown that game fish, particularly sunfish, gorge on the eggs within 3 days of their being deposited by the female carp. Since it take 5 days for the eggs to hatch this predation has resulted in elimination of carp fry in the deep water portions of the watershed.
The key finding of the research was that successful recruitment of the carp was taking place in several shallow ponds and marshes and that it is possible that a great deal of carp population control could be achieved by solving the problems created by these small areas. Markham Pond south of Saint John’s Hospital and Casey Lake northeast of White Bear Avenue and County Road C, were the primary places where the fry were developing and overwintering. Population studies showed close to 11,000 young carp in Casey and 35,000 in Markham. Small fish were radio tagged in these areas in warmer weather and then their migration into the larger bodies of water was monitored. Recently 3,000 young fish were tagged and only 27 were found to be migrating to the larger bodies of water.
Dr. Sorenson and his staff of graduate students have been testing various methods of preventing adult carp migration into the nursery wetlands and steps that could be taken to eliminate their use by carp fry. Deepening the ponds and using winter aeration to allow use by game fish, particularly sunfish, are two techniques that hold promise. Some work with chemical controls and winter draw downs is also being attempted. Barriers have been installed to limit adult carp migration into those nursery areas.
The results in reduction of carp numbers and percentage of biomass in the deep water lakes have been impressive. Estimates early in the 8 year long study showed 7-8000 carp present comprising 177 kg/ha of biomass. The most recent data showed about 3,000 carp comprising 61 kg/ha.
Primary funding for the research has been provided by the Ramsey Washington Metro Watershed Districts and the Clean Water Legacy Funds. Dr. Sorenson pledged to continued his research and control efforts so long as those fund remain available. He repeated his common theme during the presentation that while the results have been encouraging the efforts must expand and continue for many years into the future.
H.B. Fuller hosted this event in their fantastic facility.

                                                                                                                                             

Final note on the spring dinner. We had about 150 people attend.  Dellwood Country Club was a great host.  The food was delicious.  Fun was had by all.  AND, we made some money for the association.

Dam update... Tom did some investigation in Washington County about ownership and came up empty.

Until later,

Jim Moore
President, Bald Eagle Lake Association

A new era is arriving... Alum treatment.

Most summers I charter a sailboat on Lake Superior from Superior Charters. One of the things I love the most about these trips is the absolute crystal clear waters.  You can see forever. Clarity in Lake Superior is said to be over 100 ft in places.  Well... We won't see THAT, but it will certainly be a lot better than we have ever seen.

So, what's the status of the Alum treatment, you may ask??

On May 5th, the Alum treatment will begin. It will encapsulate 1200 lbs of phosphorous in the water and drop it permanently to the bottom of the lake. This will result in an amazing transformation in the clarity of the water. We'll be able to see results almost immediately. We will be the jewel of Ramsey County. No longer will we have to live with green slimy stinky water. The treatment will require 10 days for the application of the chemicals. The contractor will suspend operation during the fishing opener weekend and resume the next week. If you happen to be on the lake while this process is active, please give the boat room to work and don't water ski through the milky waters. There will also be a tank at the boat launch and trucks delivering chemicals on a regular basis over this period.

There will be a second treatment in two years to complement the first treatment. It is hoped that this will keep the lake clear for up to 20 years. Infiltration of new chemicals from the various inlets will degrade the lake over the years. To minimize this, we all need to do our part to keep nasty chemicals out of the lake. Consider a rain garden or a rain barrel to slow down the movement of water into the lake. I have access to rain barrels if anyone wants one. Free. It may take a few weeks to get one. They are 55 gallon blue and white plastic barrels used in the food industry. I'm going to use one and spray paint it brown so it isn't so obvious.

For many of us that have worked on it for so many years, this is a really big deal.  We are all very excited to see this finally come to a head. It's been great to have all of the support of everyone in this endeavor.

Have a great summer on the lake. Hope to see you out there.

It's springtime?? Dam status. Spring dinner in three weeks.

Such crazy weather.  As I sit here, I look out over the lake, which apparently still has over 30" of ice on it.  I see our Island neighbors have a car parked in front of their house on the ice. The lake was ice free last year on May 2nd.  Any guesses what it will be this year?

Our annual spring dinner is coming up in 3 short weeks. Some of our board members have been busy investigating the deterioration of the dam at the north end of the lake and trying to figure out if there is anything we can do to improve the chances of public funding of the rebuild of the dam.

So, what's going on with the dam?
At present, we are waiting to see how funding goes with the current session of the MN legislature.  Our dam is 7th on the list for DNR funding. There appears to be a good chance that the specific funding request will happen this year.  But, there is still a shortfall and Hugo will not proceed until they have all the funds.

The dam continues to degrade and need inspection and repair by Hugo city staff.  You might want to stop at the dam and inspect it yourself.  At present, no one is expecting total failure in the near term, but monitoring is necessary.

What can you do?
Tom Weyandt stated it well on our Facebook page:

• The estimated cost of the replacement is $600,000 with $258,000 coming from MnDot for the road and $250,000 from the DNR controlled Dam Safety Fund. There is no reported source for the $98,000 shortfall. The Bald Eagle project is seventh on the list of dam repair funds sought by the DNR. The DNR funds need to be approved in a bonding bill being considered at the Capital. 
• At this point residents biggest impact would come from contact with area legislators. Sen. Roger Chamberlain sen.roger.chamberlain@senate.mn, and Rep. Matt Dean rep.matt.dean@house.mn and Linda Runbeck, rep.linda.runbeck@house.mn represent the area. Others can be found at http://www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/legislators.aspx. Consider contacting them and anyone else you can think of to try and assure that the funding is approved, increased to cover the projected cost, and that the Bald Eagle Project is one of the ones that gets funded in 2014.

 Spring Dinner
You should have gotten the party invite in the mail.  Please send it back as soon as possible.  Special thanks to those who donate to the silent auction items and to Kristi Gavin and Keely Huberty on their efforts toward making the dinner a success.

We look forward to seeing you at the dinner on April 22nd, starting with happy hour at 6pm at Dellwood Country Club.  If you haven't gotten an invite, send me an email to me at: 
 

Reminder of the Alum Treatment Public meeting at White Bear Lake City Hall this Thursday evening

Looking forward to seeing you all.

Regards,
Jim Moore

Meeting with Hugo Staff and Mayor regarding the Bald Eagle Lake dam replacement

On January 29th, we ( Board members:  Jim Ascheman, Gary Krejcarek, Rick Gwynn & I) met with Hugo City staff and several leaders about the dam project.  In the meeting we went over the project and the history of the dam and who the owner may be.  Ownership presents a problem.  No one will claim ownership for it.  Full funding becomes the task to be accomplish.  We're part way there. We told Hugo we would do what we could to get support for more funding.

Current funding status:

• Total estimated cost: $600,000
• MnDOT Bridge Funds: $252,000
• DNR Dam Safety Fund request $348,000 of which they have recommend $150,000

Hugo is still in discussions with the DNR to see if they will up the ante.  Not hopeful, though.  The DNR funding is dependent on the bonding bill during the 2014 legislative session.

So, with current funding projections, the dam is short about $200,000.  Other possible sources are Ramsey County, White Bear Township, and the Rice Creek Watershed District (RCWD).

So, the task of the board is to make contact with all possible stake holders to see if we can get additional funds, which we will do over the coming months.  As is most likely typical with government decision making, this will take some time.  I'm not hopeful of a spring project, but I'm a pessimist.  Budgets have to be made and funded.  We need to get commitments before the next funding cycle.  If you can help, let the board know.  Maybe you have some extra cash under your mattress.

Check out my video of our last blizzard.

Regards,
Jim Moore

January 26th blizzard video in front of my house.

The wind really whipped up, at times.  I had a front row seat.  Luckily, I was inside looking out!  I took some video to show the craziness.

Alum treatment status & Annual Christmas tree burning

I met with Matt and Jessica of the RCWD last night and everything is still on schedule for a spring Alum treatment. They will begin the treatment when the water temperature reaches 40F. Depending on the weather, it should take about 3 weeks to complete the treatment. During this period they will use the Ramsey County boat launch area to stage the chemicals and have regular truck deliveries of chemicals to fill a storage tank. They don't have a specific contractor under contract, yet. During the treatment, the treatment areas will be a milky white. There will be no use restrictions in these areas, but it is important for efficiency if we all give them room to work. I'll keep you all posted with news as it comes in. I'm getting excited. Stay warm.
The annual Christmas tree burning on the lake on Saturday, Feb 1st.  Party on the lake starts at 8pm.  Trees are lit at 11pm.
2 weeks ago, the ice was 21" thick, so I have no fear in driving on the lake to get there.  Don't forget to leave you seat belt off if you are driving on the ice.

The trees will be piled high near the Hobie neighborhood.  Volunteers are welcome.  The pile is built starting at 10am on Saturday.  It's a lot of fun. Beat the winter blues and come join the festivities!


Regards,
Jim