A special message about the lake

Important Candlewick Lake Information

IMPORTANT LAKE NOTICE

August 31, 2012

Unfortunately the condition of the lake has not significantly improved, therefore the lake will remain closed throughout the holiday weekend.  Joe Rush, our lake biologist will be returning to the community next week to perform additional testing to determine the toxicity levels of the algae.  Once it is determined that the lake is safe for recreational usage, the lake will be re-opened.  Rest assured, Joe Rush, the Lake Management Commission, the Board of Directors and Management are all working together in an attempt to improve the condition of the lake both for the short term and more importantly for the long term. Some of the areas being looked into are as follows:

- Continuing to monitor the current blue green algae condition and its’ associated toxicity so that the lake can be open to activity as quickly as possible.

- Develop an educational program to keep the membership informed on what is going on in the lake and the direction the community is going (pro active towards quality lake management). 

This will include current projects as well as educational articles and information to create awareness of what it takes to manage a lake.  

- Researching methods for reducing nutrients coming into the lake from outside sources such as farm runoff, etc.

-  Researching methods for reducing internal phosphorus loading this may include alum treatments, hypolimnetic withdrawal, and aeration/destratification options.

-  Securing costs for a feasibility study for water replenishment during low water conditions.  Wendler Engineering Services will be providing a cost estimate to conduct a feasibility study regarding the use water wells. 

-  The thrusters installed in the cove will be removed at the end of this season and re-installed next year to evaluate their effectiveness. 

- Continuing to manage the aquatic vegetation in the lake to promote healthy native plant growth while removing undesirable non-natives like curly leaf pondweed. 

For addition information regarding blue-green algae and health risks to people and animals from exposure to algal toxins, please go to the following web site:  

http://www.epa.state.il.us/water/surface-water/blue-green-algae.html

We apologize for any inconvenience this is causing and thank you in advance for your continued cooperation.

 

We thank you for taking the time to read these important updates.

Being informed is half the battle.  

Solar Bee? What is that?

Nope, a Solar Bee is not an insect that comes from the sun to sting you, it is a solar powered circulation device. The company that sells these suggests a total of nine of these be placed in the lake. The idea is to keep the lake water constantly circulating, stopping the algae blooms. That is an over simplification of the process but you get the idea.
Our lake management commission is looking into these as well as the other options I described yesterday. Will they work? As with pretty much every option presented as ways to cleanse our lake there are those promoting it as well as the detractors. Some of the literature from the
Solar Bee company indicates alum treatments are not effective. Of course SweetWater, the company that provides alum treatments indicates otherwise.
Solar Bee has a proposal to put nine of these in our lake at a cost that from what I can tell would be around 2 1/2 times the cost of an alum treatment. There is also continuing maintenance on these units. I do not envy lake management their job in assessing the probability of success in each of the projects they are considering. I do know the commission is working hard developing a plan to get and keep our lake in shape. Those folks are fishermen, boaters, and lake lovers in general and I feel sure they will recommend to the board their best option to achieve their goal.
We have tried so many things in the past. It is not that the prior attempts were not in good faith, it is just so difficult to make an impoundment like ours into a clear body of water. It is to put it simply unnatural. Sit a tub of water outside for a month or so without changing the water and see how it looks. Ugly! We still have the aerators in the lake and the shed with the compressor sitting by the rec center on the lake shore. Well intentioned but did it work? We also had the aerator near the dam that was finally pulled out. We have air tubes running all over the bottom of the lake that were supposed to oxygenate our lake and alleviate the problems. Did they? We had the well drilled by the northwest inlet to provide a stream of cool, clear water. Why was it turned off? You get the picture. Many previous attempts have been made and here we sit with an extra hot summer and almost no rain. You see the results.
This post is already too long and is of course my opinion only, not board or lake commission opinion, so please take it as such, simply trying to keep you up to date and knowing the lake issue is on the front burner. No one could have predicted a summer like this and we are paying the price.
Ken Dillenburg

Illinois makes the news again!

An excerpt from the Wall Street Journal 8/30/2012. A huge tax increase and we are now worse off. Something is wrong here.   Ken Dillenburg

In recent years a wave of new reform Governors has washed over the Midwest, but it did skip a few states. Among them is Illinois, which now has the worst credit rating of any state besides California. Voters may want to pay attention.

On Tuesday, Standard & Poor's downgraded Illinois bonds to A from A-plus, with a continuing negative outlook. The credit rating agency singled out five years of budget deficits ranging from bad to worse to way worse. It now stands at $44 billion—another national record. S&P was also more troubled than the Springfield political class about $83 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. The legislature ended a special session on pension reform this week without, well, passing any reform.

S&P praised Democratic Governor Pat Quinn's "significant measures in the past two years to improve structural budget performance," meaning his 67% boost in personal income rates and raising the corporate tax to 9.5%. Credit raters never object to tax increases, even if they never solve the budget problem. But that's another story.

The tragedy is that Illinois is surrounded by states showing a better way. For example, all three major raters have been upgrading Ohio's ratings after years of chronic fiscal problems. Governor John Kasich hasn't imposed fearsome austerity—he simply streamlined the budget. Mr. Kasich and other GOP Governors have prominent speaking places at this week's Tampa convention. Will Mr. Quinn next week?

Checking for a trip route

I was on Google maps checking a route for a trip Fran and I may take later in the fall and something struck me. I clipped a couple pictures from Chatek Lake in Wisconsin after noticing the lines in the algae caused by boats. The lower picture is a closer view of a shoreline. Look familiar? That is scum like we are fighting here. These are 2012 pictures. As I posted before, we are not alone in this fight. Chatek is a huge lake so I am a little surprised. I don't believe it is a compound either, it is river fed as I recall.

(click on pictures to enlarge)



Ken Dillenburg

Meeting with our lake manager/biologist

Wednesday a meeting was held with our lake manager/biologist, three board members, our G.M., our assistant G.M., and a representative from the lake management commission. The purpose was to discuss  options to remediate the lake’s situation as well as to start to develop a plan going forward through the lake management commission to address possible future lake issues.

Our biologist told us this year is “the perfect storm.” We are not alone in our toxic algae situation. Other lakes are fighting the same situation. A combination of phosphorus load, temperature, lots of sunlight, and the drought have all worked together to bring on this toxic bloom. A couple points I had not considered were the lack of heavy ice on the lake last winter, the early lake thaw, and the hot March, all leading to a longer season and hotter lake for algae to thrive. Next year who knows?

Remediation topics discussed were an alum treatment, wells being drilled or the existing one drilled deeper to provide a constant stream during dry periods, SolarBees, and skimming the dead algae. Regarding the skimming, Joe (biologist) indicates this is really just cosmetic, not cost effective, and the toxins will still be in the lake. When the algae dies it eventually just falls harmlessly to the bottom of the lake and the scum disappears.

The alum treatment cost would be about what I guessed  here a few weeks ago, around $200,000.00. The same company and even the same person in charge of the last treatment is still available so we should be able to count on the same procedure if this is accomplished. That is a lot of money but our lake is our centerpiece and personally I don’t care if we have to do this every few years, we must maintain our lake.

The lake management commission will be working on a plan to present formally to the board soon. This year we have to just ride it out until tests come back with acceptable results. That shouldn’t be much longer as it appears we are over the worst unless something unexpected happens. Some of our water is still like green paint.

Only certain strains of blue/green algae become toxic and it is impossible to tell if there is a problem without testing. There frankly is not a lot of information on the topic currently available. We continue to test. Our biologist indicates from the samples just taken he feels sure the water is not yet safe without even sending them in for lab analysis.

If lake management comes back with a recommendation for the alum treatment it will probably not happen until next spring or early summer. The other remediation possibilities will take a lot of research and you guessed it, engineering and government input. I would like to see us start with a clean…or cleaner lake then move forward with the other possibilities for future maintenance of our lake.

Ken Dillenburg (This post is from my meeting notes and more detailed information will be available from other sources as things progress)

Would you like to have a souvenir?

Any of you folks who have been around a couple years will be familiar with these buttons the Pride Group provided to show opposition to the idea of turning Candlewick into a city. I have several of these left and with the passage of the new law they will not be needed in the future. I also have a few buttons that say "I love Candlewick Lake" with a big heart in the middle. If you want one of the INC buttons or Candlewick buttons drop me an email. I'll be happy to provide one for you.

Ken Dillenburg

A phone call

This morning at 7:20 a.m. I received a call from a naysayer. He yelled two or three sentences for all of the ten second call.
I was up at 4:45 this morning so if this was to try to wake me early it failed. In the future if this same person calls I will show the same respect I was given by hanging up as was done to me. Being on the board and being controversial does not obligate me to listen to that type call.
Ken Dillenburg

The new guard at the south gate

Probably anyone using the south gate has noticed our new "guard." He is very unafraid of cars. I have noticed him many times and last Sunday when I left about 8:30 a.m. there he was again, standing between the in and out lanes outside the gates watching the cars. I stopped, rolled down my window, and waved my hand to him about four feet away. He continued his guard duties. I think I am going to find out what he should be fed and start keeping a little feed in the car to toss to him when he is there. I wonder if others are doing that already. Why else would he love the spot so? When I came back in the same gate later there he was, next to Dawson Lake Road, shaking his feathers to get the rain off. Send me an email with suggested names and I will draw one at random. Our new guard has to have a name. By the way, this is not my picture, but one blatantly stolen when Jim Mcquinn posted it on Facebook.    
Ken Dillenburg

Weekly Public Safety Report

Candlewick Lake Public Safety

 

WEEKLY REPORT

Week ending 8/26/2012

Rescue Calls

Public Safety responded to the 200 block of Talladega for a report of a possible overdose.  Public Safety remained there until the subject was transported for treatment.

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Birch for a subject not feeling well.  Public Safety remained there until the subject was transported.

Public Safety responded to the 2000 block of Candlewick Dr. for a report of a subject who had fallen and could not get up.

Suspicious Activity

Public Safety responded to the 200 block of Briar Cliff for a report of a sexual assault.  The matter is being investigated by the Boone County Sheriff’s Office.

Public Safety observed subjects intoxicated while riding bicycles in the 700 block of Candlewick Dr.  The Boone County Sheriff’s Office subsequently placed a subject in custody.

Public Safety observed subjects walking on Brandywine who subsequently ran when they observed Public Safety.  The subjects could not be located.

Traffic Crash

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Galleon Run for a report of a traffic crash.  The Sheriff’s Department was summoned and took over the incident.

Damaged Property

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Columbia and the 600 block of Candlewick Dr. for a report of damaged mailboxes.  The matter is under investigation.

Domestic Disputes

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of King Henry for a report of a domestic dispute.  Public safety remained there until the Sheriff’s Department arrived.

Citations issued 7

Warnings issued 10

 

We thank you for taking the time to read these important updates.

Being informed is half the battle.  

As promised, here comes the tennis court fence

This is going to be one gorgeous tennis court, one you can be proud to show your visitors. For many years this has been an eyesore. No more!  Ken Dillenburg

Thanks to Barb Appelhans for the picture.

Saturday's dog show

     

 Please excuse the layout of these pictures. I had a terrible time getting them to line up correctly for some reason. It looks like it was a good turnout for the first Candlewick Dog show.   Ken

Thanks to Barb Appelhans for the pictures.

Look at Karl and Tom's creations!

How these guys make some of these masterpieces is beyond me. What a gift and how nice they are so willing to share their talent in teaching others.
Karl Steiskal and Chef Tom James are the dynamic duo when it comes to beautiful creations.. Ken

Thank you to Barb Appelhans for the great pictures.

A Sunday consideration

Being honest may not get you a lot of friends, but it will always get you the right ones. It's not how many friends you have it's the quality of friends you have. Fake people hate honesty. It's the lies that keep them feeling good about themselves and their lives. So share your true feelings about their actions and watch how they fade away.

(Not sure I agree completely with this quotation. Being honest can get you a lot of friends.   Ken)

What is that pounding sound???

When the Candlewick Pride Group was founded it was for the main purpose of stopping the attempt to incorporate Candlewick Lake as a city. We felt and still feel it would be a disaster for our community and wanted you to get all the facts pertaining to the issue. I am happy to report Public Act number 97-1090 has been signed into law, driving the final nail into the casket of the incorporation of Candlewick. I will post the excerpt below. We thank all those who helped with this effort.
 Ken Dillenburg

(d) No action to incorporate a common interest community as

a municipality shall commence until an instrument agreeing to

incorporation has been signed by two-thirds of the members.

    (d) No action to incorporate a common interest community as

a municipality shall commence until an instrument agreeing to

incorporation has been signed by two-thirds of the members.

Way to go Rachel! Nice bass.

  My name is Rachel Chronowski and I am a resident of Lake Candlewick. I caught this Fish on July 22nd! My biggest fish yet on the lake 20 inches and 3lbs 9oz , it was so exciting and I wanted to share the news! 

(posted by Ken)

A couple more board meeting notes

Louann Gotsch reported vacation Bible School held here at Candlewick was well received with good attendance. That is good news.
Bernie Barc when speaking of our current toxic algae problem mentioned the well by the golf course that was dug for the purpose of having fresh water coming into the lake as well as a recommendation that was made some time ago to use a scum sucking machine to remove the surface residue when it forms and dispose of it. 
My memory was the well was shut off due to Caledonia's concern we were draining their aquifers but Bernie had a different recollection so I am not sure what the reasoning was. The well is now used as the water source for maintaining Savannah Oaks. When it was used for the lake it put out a huge stream into Fisherman's cove.
I mentioned covering the naysayer alert in a different post but frankly when reading my notes it again would be the same old stuff. Naysayers feel I am worthless and should be removed from the board by the other members. And so it goes.
Ken Dillenburg

More detail on the Wounded Warrior tournament

In memory of Iraq Veteran, James Gosnell Catch and Release Bass Tournament
Entry Fee: $50.00 per team. 50% pay out to teams 50% donated to the 
Wounded Warriors Foundation
Optional Big Bass Pot Fee: $20 with 100% pay out
Cash only morning of tournament – Sept 29th @ 6:15 AM 

Pro Hardware, Bass Pro Shops, Marathon Gas and Pacemaker are donating ice cream & raffled items after 1pm weigh-in for all Candlewick resident’s
The intent of this year’s tournament is to recruit Candlewick resident fishermen with boats to participate in next year’s event where they would partner with a Wounded Warrior during the fish tournament.
Wounded Warrior fishing tournaments are popular in other states, and we would like to show our support and appreciation for the veterans as well. If you are an inexperienced bass fisherman with a boat, and want to participate, we will show you some techniques and locations to catch fish. You need a working live well or a cooler with a battery operated pump. This is a great opportunity to give back and have fun at the same time.
The same rules apply for this tournament as the annual Candlewick bass tournament. Residents and guest of Candlewick are encouraged to come down to the weigh-in behind the Rec center. We will have a raffle of gift certificates from above sponsors and a ice cream social for the public after the 1pm weigh in. Donations would be appreciated for the Wounded Warriors Organization.
A Wounded Warrior representative will be here to speak and collect funds to be donated. Any questions please contact Chuck Hart at bassmaster1211@gmail.com or 815-520-1796 <’)))><
Effective this year non-resident boats are not allowed on Candlewick

Karl is a professional. This will be a good program

This is a class on different and easy garnishes, from radish roses and scallion flowers to watermelon baskets cars rabbits and whales. It is a matter of one's imagination as to the limit of one's designs.Also lemon half pigtails and crowns.There will be others like making a pineapple into a dip bowl, pepper trees, and zucchini spirals

(posted by Ken)

The cops at the gate

 I noticed yesterday we had the county Sheriff's Deputies once again at our main gate ticketing drivers without seat belts in use. I contacted the Sheriff last year and let him know I felt this was nothing but a cash grab and completely inappropriate on our property. Since they patrol here there is nothing we can do but I don't like it a bit. Enough said.   Ken

What a wonderful wedding

 These pictures were by Barb Appelhans. I can't think of a more beautiful spot for a wedding, can you? (or a more beautiful bride)



Saturday Aug. 18th Blanca Hernandez and Daniel Bader were married next to the willow tree behind the Rec. center.

Lots to do in Candlewick

Why are the previous posts a countdown?

Just a quick explanation. When I write a post it appears in the order in which I post, which makes it difficult when writing a series. It will read third, then second, then first. Yes, there is a way of saving each post but it is a pain in the neck and this is time consuming so please bear with me and the odd posting order.  Ken

Tuesday unofficial board minutes….part3

There will be a “Wounded Warrior” catch and release bass tournament held here in honor of Iraq veteran James Gosnell. 50% of the receipts will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Foundation. The rules will be the same as for our other bass tournaments and no guest boats will be allowed on the lake per our rules.

Neighbors helping neighbors will be held again this year. This is the project to provide Christmas gifts and dinners to needy Candlewick families. We will be starting with ten families again and building from there according to response.

Barb Appelhans will be designated as our official Candlewick photographer. You have undoubtedly noticed her at pretty much every event here taking snapshots. This is a time consuming duty that deserves a position.

The subject of aggressive dogs was discussed and sent to public safety with the request to adopt some stern policies concerning this issue. Fines and banning the animals was discussed. Our residents deserve to feel safe walking our streets with or without their pets.

We are planning a “meet the candidates” night for those running for office from district 1. This has nothing to do with the Candlewick board election, simply an attempt to allow our residents as well as those residing outside Candlewick to see, hear, and question the candidates on issues of concern. The plan is for an October date to be set.

October 20, a Saturday, from ten until noon will be the next Town Hall for resident input regarding the Candlewick experience. Time for the good, bad, and ugly to be expressed. All residents are welcome.

For the complete official minutes please watch for the Candlewick Newspaper. What you read here is simply a quick synopsis.

Ken Dillenburg

Tuesday unofficial board meeting report…part 2

The posts are now painted black as part of the rejuvenation of our tennis courts. Next the black vinyl coated chain link fencing will be installed so the project is getting close to completion. This will be gorgeous when finished. Take a look when you get a chance.

Our treasurer, Jeff, reported our financial condition is still good with ample funds in our accounts and we are coming in under budgeted expenses at this time. Our funds on hand total $4,073,361 but as I always mention we must finish the fiscal year as well as pay for the capital projects from reserves so this number will not hold. That being said, we are looking good!

Karate classes will be starting in September, the walking path is marked and waiting for further action, and Karl Steiskal will be holding a class this Saturday on vegetable garnishing which I will report in greater detail on another post.

The idea of electric aggregation was dropped due to the possibility of Candlewick being classified as a utility since we are an association.

Bad debt was written off in the amount of $1,406.61. Regarding the bad debt issue, we are using all means to pursue any past debt that is owed to you, the property owners. You should not have to bear the burden of paying other’s debts.

Part time help from our maintenance department will be used to help with the huge shouldering and drainage project being done to protect our roads from standing water seeping under roads and undermining the paving. It is uncertain how many miles of road shoulders can be finished this fall but it is a priority.

Our motor on the Crestliner patrol boat has finally bit the dust after about 5,000 hours of use. We have spent thousands rebuilding that motor in the past so it was decided to buy a new one at the cost of about $8,500. That is a lot of money but it comes with a warranty and installation with controls and an hour counter. It had to be done.

The carpeting in the Dockside Grill is going to be replaced with tile. The carpeting has such ugly traffic paths it gives the grill an unclean appearance. The tile will be easier to 

maintain.

More to come later.   Ken

Unofficial report on Tuesday night’s board meeting…part 1

I may not be able to get a complete report out today due to a funeral and visitation I am attending starting this morning. Anything missing, probably including the Naysayer alert will be a day late.

Joe Rush, our lake biologist/manager was in attendance for a Q&A that lasted for some time. He was very informative in his explanation of the dangers of blue/green algae blooms and his reason for asking us to close the lake. He is looking at actions to help avoid such serious blooms in the future including adding more filtering plantings, and yes, a possible alum treatment as well as other options. He had been on the lake just before the meeting and noted the algae had moved again, now to the east side of the lake as well as some other areas. This means the worst areas of contamination will not be contained, but will drift, making this impossible to know where the worst areas will be but also the bulk of our lake is infected with this toxin. One good point is the odor means the algae is dying and starting to run it’s course. The lake will revert back to normal before too long a time. Monitoring will continue until we can sound the all clear.

Naturally the very dry and hot conditions contributed greatly to this problem. No water is entering the lake from the inlets at this time so there is stagnation. The idea of using new wells or the well from the golf course to supplement lake water was discussed again. The golf course well was used many years ago but was shut down as I recall due to complaints from Caledonia residents that we were draining their aquifers. That is strictly my recollection and may not be accurate. All ideas will be investigated by lake management for future courses of action.

Ken Dillenburg

A submission from the office Manager of the Belvidere Daily Republican

This message was sent to us for possible use. Thank you Kathy for your information and comments.  Ken

“What are blue-green algae? Blue-greens are very primitive organisms that are not really algae; they are actually bacteria. One major group - planktonic blue-greens - are microscopic and cause the typical pea-soup green color to water. The most common of the planktonic blue-greens are Anabaena, Aphanizomenon, and Microcystis (commonly referred to as Annie, Fannie, and Mike!).

The yellowish-green scum formation is typical of most planktonic blue-greens. Heavy infestations (blooms) of blue-greens are stimulated by inputs of phosphorus and nitrogen from fertilizers, organic wastes, pesticides into surface waters.”

This is why CWL residents should all be aware of what is in the fertilizers and garden products that they use – the residue from these products ends up in the lake, feeding the growth of algae. Please do not over-use these products and please do not over-water your property.

“Toxicity among blue-greens in general is well known, however it is extremely rare for them to cause toxicity. We do not know why this is. Perhaps toxins are released only from certain very rare strains; perhaps the environmental conditions for toxin production do not often occur. Because we do not know what causes a blue-green to become toxic, it is impossible to predict when toxicity might occur. The safest bet is to prevent animals and humans from drinking and to restrict swimming activities when water turns pea-soup green.”

The CWL lake management committee has already researched possible remedies to help stifle future algae problems. One such idea recommended by a professional consultant is to restore native plants around the lake shoreline. The native wetland plants help filter water and do not require pesticides or fertilizers for maintenance.

Anglers meeting cancelled this month

                        The Anglers meeting for August has been cancelled due to current lake conditions.

Why the lake closure?

 I won't try to go into a lot of the technical detail here but the results came back from our lake biologist (Joe Rush) and they were not good. Some areas of the lake like the beach are not bad but that can change very quickly with the drift of the blue green algae bloom on the lake. Samples taken from areas that have the surface residue of thick algae show toxin concentrations far above danger levels and when mixed with water from the center of the lake without the floating scum the level is still far, far too high to be safe. If boats are allowed on the lake it will mix the toxins with all the water compounding the problem.
 Since we have been advised regarding this issue we are obligated to act for the safety of our residents so all lake activity is suspended until further tests show it is again safe to use. An algae bloom normally takes three to five weeks to run it's course so we already have a couple weeks behind us and this shouldn't be a long term thing. Remember the hundred degree days and no rain? We have a stagnant pool. The new thrusters have been turned off to avoid further mixing.
  There is a minimal risk of this being an airborne threat as well although it is not proven at this point. Personally if we have the odor at our home I am closing the windows as a precaution but that is just me. Boating just raises the possibility of an airborne problem due to the spray from the wakes.
  Joe will cover all this at tonight's board meeting so a lot more detail will be available to you there. Are we being overly reactive to this? Maybe, but how would you feel if we left the lake open as usual and someone became ill? We're not going to chance it.
Ken Dillenburg

A new feature on the Pride site

               Please meet “Naysayer”.

When there is some new complaint or charge by the Naysayer I will post it here with the title “Naysayer alert”. There may not be a lot of these because most of the complaints are simply repeats of prior complaints but the picture will make the posts easy to spot.  

Ken Dillenburg

Weekly public safety report

e

Important Candlewick Lake Information

Candlewick Lake Public Safety

 

WEEKLY REPORT

Week ending 08/19/2012

Rescue Calls

Public Safety responded to the 900 block of Candlewick Dr. for a report of a subject having a possible heart attack.  Public Safety remained there until the subject was transported for treatment.

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Picadilly for a report of a subject having a seizure.  Public Safety remained there until the subject was transported for treatment.

Public safety responded to the 500 block of Bounty for a report of a subject having trouble breathing.  Public Safety remained there until the subject was transported for treatment.

Public Safety will always respond to rescue calls and assist until emergency responders arrive.

Suspicious Activity

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Valhalla for a report of a call made to 911 with nobody talking on the line.  Public Safety responded and turned the matter over to the Boone County Sheriff’s Office.  It was determined that there was a mistake in dialing a number.

Public Safety responded to the 500 block of Lamplighter Loop for a report of a threats complaint.  The matter was turned over to the Sheriff’s Department.

Public Safety responded to the 100 block of Lamplighter Loop for a report of an intoxicated subject.  Upon arrival the subject had left the area.

Theft

Public Safety responded to several complaints of unlocked vehicles entered and items removed from within the vehicles in the area of Brandywine.  Some of the items were recovered by Public safety when found in an open field and turned over to the Boone County Sheriff’s Office.  The matter is under investigation.

Public Safety would like to remind residents to lock their vehicles and remove any and all valuables from within vehicles.  This would greatly reduce the possibility of becoming a victim of theft.

Citations Issued    13

Warnings Issued   9

Dedication

 I think everyone should know how important our volunteers are to our community. Last week when we found the lake had toxicity problems due to the algae bloom it was decided we needed to post warnings at the launch areas and use reader boards to be sure all knew of the problem. The question then arose about the people living on the lake. How would they know if they don't use the launches? Immediately volunteers from lake management came forward and offered to hand deliver flyers to every lake home to handle the problem. That is a lot of walking. They deserve thanks along with all the others who volunteer so much of their time helping your community.
Ken Dillenburg

This week...CWL (click to enlarge)

Well, tomorrow is the board meeting

Don't forget. Tomorrow (Tuesday) evening at 6:30 the open mic starts for property owner input. Be sure to stop by and see what I have been writing about. There will be a half hour for P.O. input then the meeting proper will start. I'll post the agenda here.   Ken


CANDLEWICK LAKE ASSOCIATION, INC.
BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETING
August 21,2012
6:30 P.M.
(Please turn off or silence cell phones and pagers, etc. during the meeting)
PLEDGE OF ALLEGANCE/PRAYER
ROLL CALL/CALL TO ORDER
PUBLIC FORUM POLICY
OPEN FORUM FOR PROPERTY OWNERS (30 minutes)
AGENDA APPROVAL
MINUTES - Regular Board of Director Meeting Minutes of July 17 , 2012 (2 minutes)
MONITORING REPORTS
l. General Manager's Report-August 2012 (2 minutes)
2. Citation Review Hearing Report-July 14,2012 & August 11,2012 (l minute)
3. Other:
A. Maintenance Report - Open Work Order Report - Project Progress Report (2 minutes)
B. Building Department Citation/Warning Report - July 2012 (2 minutes)
C. Public Safety Report - July 2012 (2 minutes)
D. Savannah Oaks Golf Course Update - (2 minutes)
BOARD COMMITTEE/COMMISSION REPORTS
l. Financial - JeffLutzow (5 minutes)
2. ECC - Don Parisi - July 5, 2012, July 18,2012 & August 1,2012 Meeting Minutes (5 minutes)
3. Lake Management - Steve Lambright - Meeting Minutes of July 10,2012 (5 minutes)
4. Road Construction Plan (ADHOC) - Ken Dillenburg (5 minutes)
5. Recreation - Karl Steiskal (5 minutes)
6. Legal - Bonnie Maron (5 minutes)
7. Golf Course - Chuck Corso (5 minutes)
UNFINISHED BUSINESS
1. Resolution 12-R-30 - Lot Sales Guidelines (10 minutes)
2. Lot Purchases (10 minutes)
3. Electrical Aggregation (5 minutes)
NEW BUSINESS
l. Bad Debt write-off (5 minutes)
2. Resolution l2-R-31- Road Work (5 minutes)
3. Resolution l2-R.-32 - PS Boat Motor - (10 minutes)
4. Resolution l2-R-33 - Tennis Courts (5 minutes)
5. Resolution l2-R-34 - Carpet Replacement in Restaurannt
6. Fishing Tournament - Wounded Warrior Program (5 minutes)
7. Neighbors Helping Neighbors (5 minutes)
8. Candlewick Lake Photographer (5 minutes)
9. Aggressive Dogs - Banning (10 minutes)
10. Meet the Candidates Night - (10 minutes)
I l Town Hall Follow-Up (15 minutes)
EXECUTIVE SESSION
l. Litigation
ADJOURNMENT

A Sunday consideration

Life rarely turns out exactly the way you want it to, but you still have an opportunity to make it great. 

 You have to do what you can, with what you have, exactly where you are.  It won’t always be easy, but it will be worth it in the end.  Remember that there is no perfect life, just perfect moments.  And it’s these moments you must cherish; it’s these moments that make the whole journey worthwhile.

Posted by Ken

Who could not love it here?

Barb Appelhans took this beautiful picture of our lake a few days ago. It is so peaceful and relaxing to see.

(posted by Ken)

Let’s discuss the lake

I have lived here about 25 years and as any of us long timers will tell you the lake has always had tough summers. Being an impoundment with times that have insufficient water inflow there is bound to be water stagnation and algae blooms. One reason the problem is getting more attention now is we are trying to mitigate a situation that has few solid remedies. We all have heard about beach closings on many lakes, even Lake Michigan, so this is not uncommon. Pierce and Olson lakes in Rock Cut state park have had problems with e coli in the past. We are not immune.

When we first bought our lot here I noticed during the summer the far west fingers would fill up with stagnant material to the point it looked like you could walk on it. We blamed it on the affluent discharge from our sanitary system since it discharged into our lake. I remember going to and speaking at a county board meeting with others in an attempt to get the affluent discharged into Beaver Creek, which eventually happened after the multi-million dollar system was built to assure clean discharge. There was an alum treatment applied at that time and the lake was almost scary clear, a blue green water that had visibility to a depth of probably fifteen feet or more. That lasted a few years as I recall.

One problem with the discharge going into Beaver Creek was it eliminated that source of water going into the lake. Our lake eventually filled up with weeds to the extent it was almost unusable, then all the weeds suddenly completely died. One time we also drained the lake for dredging and weeds grew taller than your head on the newly exposed shoreline.

I could go on about all the lake problems but just know we have tried and continue to try everything to mitigate this as evidenced by the recent dredging and now the thrusters to try to move the water. With no water coming into the lake in the area of the thrusters they may be doing no good at all or even causing harm by stirring.

I thought about this last year and it is again crossing my mind. Is it time for another alum treatment? It locks the nutrients into the bottom of the lake for some time, although not permanently. It is expensive, I am guessing close to $200,000 for the treatment and that is strictly a guess. That is a lot of money but if it keeps the lake acceptable for ten years that is $20,000 per year when amortized. Again, I am just thinking out loud and I may be off base on this but it is a thought. I am not sure if reserves could be used for this expense but I would think so and we do have the reserves well enough funded to cover it. You may never hear another thing about this so don’t hold your breath. I have not researched this at all. Just “thinking out loud” to my friends.

Ken Dillenburg