Committee Reports:
Fundraising: Total fundraising for 2013 was considerably less than contributions in 2012. A sub-committee will look at new ideas for fundraising.
Stormwater Drainage Project (SDP): The project has been repeatedly held up by a number of factors. A meeting was held in December to update Rudy Marconi on the Third Lane Stream Project and ask for his help. A second meeting was held on January that included our project engineer, John McCoy, and a number of important decisions were made and a timeline constructed to move forward. A revised permit application was sent to the Army Corps of Engineers on 2/3/14.
Lake Management: We used the lake management company Aquatic Control Technologies (ACT) in 2013, and we have contracted with them again for 2014. We will work with ACT to get ahead of the algae in 2014. ACT’s report on the invasive plant Eurasian Water Milfoil shows fewer plants in 2013 than in previous years. Unfortunately the aquatic weed Slenderleaf Pondweed increased its presence in the lake in 2013. We will begin in March with frequent communications to ACT to ensure that we receive the necessary permits from the state to begin lake herbicide treatments at the most effective time.
Spillway and Lake Drawdown: The two-week fall drawdown lowered the lake by 22” – 24.” The lake stayed down from approximately 11/15/13 – 1/6/14 and, with the very cold weather during this time, we expect some aquatic weed die-off. The spillway appears to remain the same and the MLIF-installed “tarp” has held and appears in good shape. We will know more once the lake thaws.
Lake Protection Zone: The oil spill on Old Sib Road near a contributing stream to the lake was caught and handled very quickly and very little, if any, damage was done to the lake. Approvals for the Padre Pio School expansion was followed carefully by MLIF as their property has significant lakefront footage. The expansion was approved through Planning and Zoning and the Inland Wetlands Board with modifications thought to protect the lake.
Goose Egg Addling: Goose eggs were addled in the early spring to reduce the goose population on the lake.
Anne S. Richardson Grant: We received a $5,000 Richardson grant to remove organic matter from the lake. In late 2013, a contractor with workers was hired to remove organic matter from the northern end of the lake. A 3’ area by the shoreline was cleared but the muck was too deep to manually do any more. The organic matter is 4-5 feet deep in that area of the lake. In lieu of that effort, the grant funding allowed us to bring in a 30-yard dumpster fort lakeside owners to deposit their dead organic matter during fall clean-up. Flyers were distributed to all the lakeside homeowners explaining the program and the availability of the dumpster. The dumpster was completely filled with lake debris and organic matter and removed. For 2014, we have applied for a larger grant which would enable us to hire a company with the necessary heavy equipment to remove the accumulated organic matter from a much larger area of the lake. We will know in July if our grant application, or some portion of it, has been approved.
Nominating Committee: A Nominating Committee with one Board member and two non-Board members (watershed residents) proposed and presented the slate of officers and directors for 2014. A motion to approve the slate of officers and directors for 2014 as presented by the Nominating Committee was moved and seconded. Hearing no discussion the motion was unanimously approved. A new Board member, Bernie Cassidy, was welcomed.
MLIF 2014 Officers and Directors:
Barb Hartman, President Mimi Dalbey, Vice President Kitty Fischer, Secretary Rosemary Hawkins Sposito, Treasurer Mike Austin, Director Bernie Cassidy, Director Barbara Cmiel, Director Margie Collora, Director Nancy Jacobowitz, Director, Tessa Jucaite, Director Jeff McAllister, Director Joe Moorhead, Director
New Business:
Larry Marsicano, head of the Candlewood Lake Authority, has agreed to speak at our June or July meeting. We will publicize the date, time and place to the watershed residents.
