Dear Friends of the Lake:
2010 is just about
finished. We want to both update you on the progress made this year by
your FLLA and provide you with an initial schedule of events for 2011.
2010 ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Lake Ice Annual Clean Up: 2010 was the fourth year that Association volunteers cleaned up a dumpster load of trash and debris from the ice prior to ice out. They then enjoyed a complimentary barbecue sponsored by Board member Pete Paider of the Forest Laker.
Invasive Species Aquatic Weed Control Program: Control of the invasive species Curly Leaf Pondweed (CLP) through DNR approved and controlled herbicide treatment has been a major goal of the Association . By working closely with the City, treated areas have increased as follows:
- 15
acres in 2008(trial)
- 100
acres in 2009
- 155
acres in 2010: Lake 3(63 acres), Lake 2(37 acres) and Lake 1(55 acres)
With this year’s expansion to
Lake 1 we now have an active and aggressive treatment program on all three
lakes. The 2010 treatment cost was $32,000, funded $25,000 by the city and
$7,000 by your Association.
Weed Harvesting Program: The city and
Association worked together to continue selective weed harvesting to
accomplish the following goals:
1.To keep lake connecting channels open.
2.To maintain open paths from the various bay entrances to deeper water
3.To clear open paths to deeper water for Lake 3 public launches
The frequency and success of the program is dependent on the number of volunteers we have , so if you can, please make time to volunteer in 2011. The Association donated $2000 to the City to help with harvester maintenance costs. Thank you to board members Blake Dalbec and Jeff Gosiak for organizing and leading the harvesting program this year.
Membership Drives: Association membership increased from 220 last year to 300 this year but fell short of our goal of 400. The following activities were focused on increasing membership;
1.To keep lake connecting channels open.
2.To maintain open paths from the various bay entrances to deeper water
3.To clear open paths to deeper water for Lake 3 public launches
The frequency and success of the program is dependent on the number of volunteers we have , so if you can, please make time to volunteer in 2011. The Association donated $2000 to the City to help with harvester maintenance costs. Thank you to board members Blake Dalbec and Jeff Gosiak for organizing and leading the harvesting program this year.
Membership Drives: Association membership increased from 220 last year to 300 this year but fell short of our goal of 400. The following activities were focused on increasing membership;
- A
meeting flier was hand delivered to all nonmembers living on the lake
inviting them to attend the Association annual meeting. We signed up 30
new members.
- Board
members recruited and spoke at at lake condo and homeowner
association meetings.
- “Arts
in the Park” summer program. This activity helped increase membership,
helped educate the community on the Association and lake issues and raised
money by selling lake related items.
Thank you to Board member Gayle Hove for organizing and running “Arts in the Park” for the third year in a row and thank you to the Association volunteers who worked at the booth over the 14 summer weeks.
Watershed District(WSD): The association continued to work closely with the local Comfort Lake-Forest Lake WSD to improve water quality. In response to our emphasis on starting a program to help prevent invasive species (zebra mussels and milfoil) from entering Forest Lake, The WSD provided funds to the DNR for 100 hours of public launch boat inspections and boater education on Forest Lake this past summer. The WSD continued their matching grant program to homeowners ($3000) and to commercial properties ($15,000) for installing rain gardens/lakeshore restoration projects to keep phosphorus and pollutants out of the lake.
Fundraisers:
1. The spring Wine Tasting Event was, again, a very successful fund
raiser for the Association. Thank you to Board members Chance Norby and Bob
Muske for organizing this event, to the other Board members who helped, and to
our many association and non association members who supported the event with their
donations and attendance.
2. The fall Boat Cleanup was offered as both a convenience and fundraiser. Thank you to Pete Paider for organizing the event and to Abbra Carpet Cleaning for their indispensable support.
Documentation of Lake Value to the Community/City: This past year the Association worked very hard developing a data base that documented the economic and recreational value of the lake to a community base much broader than just lakeshore property owners. For example, did you know that 85% of the people who use the lake do not live on the lake? This and other lake usage facts was very instrumental in building understanding and alignment with the City Council and other city officials on the lake as an economic and recreational asset and community priority.
Election Candidates’ Positions on Lake Issues: The Association arranged to have candidates for the office of Mayor or City Council explain their position on selected lake issues.This information was both sent to you and posted on our web site to provide you with information as input to your overall voting decision. Thank you to Board members Blake Roberts and Bjorn Larsen and to Liz Swanson for organizing and implementing this project.
2. The fall Boat Cleanup was offered as both a convenience and fundraiser. Thank you to Pete Paider for organizing the event and to Abbra Carpet Cleaning for their indispensable support.
Documentation of Lake Value to the Community/City: This past year the Association worked very hard developing a data base that documented the economic and recreational value of the lake to a community base much broader than just lakeshore property owners. For example, did you know that 85% of the people who use the lake do not live on the lake? This and other lake usage facts was very instrumental in building understanding and alignment with the City Council and other city officials on the lake as an economic and recreational asset and community priority.
Election Candidates’ Positions on Lake Issues: The Association arranged to have candidates for the office of Mayor or City Council explain their position on selected lake issues.This information was both sent to you and posted on our web site to provide you with information as input to your overall voting decision. Thank you to Board members Blake Roberts and Bjorn Larsen and to Liz Swanson for organizing and implementing this project.
2011 Program Plans
A. EVENT DATES
2011 Membership Dues: Electronic invoicing of members for 2011 dues will be in January.
Ice Cleanup: March 12,19,26 depending on ice condition/weather
FLLA Annual Meeting: Wed., March 30th
Spring Boat Cleanup Fund Raiser: Saturday, May 21st
Wine/Beer Tasting Fund Raiser: Friday, June 3rd
B. PROGRAMS
Aquatic Weed Control: The City and Association will work together to treat 170 acres in 2011. Cost: $35,000. The city will fund $25,000 and the association will fund $10,000.
Weed Harvesting : This program will continue with the city and association working together. The FLLA will contribute $2000 for maintenance of the harvester. We need volunteers to run the harvester..please volunteer if you can.
Membership: The goal is to increase membership from 300 in 2010 to 400 in 2011 which would represent 35% of lake residents. To do this we will need volunteers. Please volunteer.
Write a Lake Management Plan: We need volunteers to work with the Watershed District to help write a 5 year Lake Management Plan so we can qualify for funds to improve water quality and address the issue of summer algae blooms.
C. NEW PROGRAMS
Storm Water Run-Off Lake Contamination: Storm water run-off whether from residential or commercial property is one of the major contributors to declining water quality and algae blooms. We will work with the WSD and the city to develop a plan and schedule to address identified storm water run-off sites.
Zebra Mussels (Invasive Species):
- Continue
to work with the WSD to fund DNR public launch boat inspections.
- Test/evaluate
to determine to what extent Zebra Mussels could propagate in Forest
Lake.
- Develop
a monitoring and action plan for zebra mussels.
We look for your continued and expanded support both financially and through volunteering in 2011. We are now at a growth stage where we need more volunteers to continue to make meaningful progress on lake issues. Thank you.
