July 4th Celebration
July 4th was quite the day with the heavy rains flooding the entire lake to more than 2.5 feet above full pool level. My personal thanks to Scott Johnson, Marilee Magerkurth, Craig Davis, Jack Jobe and many of the board members who helped with gathering facts, communications and making the decisions for the holiday.
Did you know, we work with Premier Pyrotechnics each year to plan, execute and handle all the fireworks for the Association. They are a family run operation located in Richland, MO and the shooter for our show has been doing it for many years. You can learn more about Premier at their website https://premierpyro.com/. Each year we renew our annual contract after the July 4th exhibit to lock in our date as firework display experts are in high demand. Thank you all who donate each year as without your donations we would not have such a great annual event.
FYI, we will be having a one-time increase in the fireworks budget a few years from now to celebrate our 100-year anniversary. The bigger the donations now and into the future will help us with a bigger Anniversary show.
Last, a few observations of the day. I was very impressed with how everyone respected the lake closure to power watercraft all day, especially as the weather improved. It made for a very quiet, peaceful time to enjoy shore time with the family, and I noted many Kayaks getting time to really explore the lake. Unfortunately, we did have one individual decide to drive past the Road Closed barricade from Z Block right as the fireworks were about to launch. Please make sure you and your guest respect the barricades so we can keep everyone safe including the firework crew. There was a glitch in the firework display, which like so many things in life can happen at the worst times. The firework crew fixed the glitch when safe and finished the show. Of course, the brief intermission took away from the full effect, but the overall fireworks were still awesome. I understand the disappointment, but like many things in life let’s move on. There were a few comments about how close we let the boats get to the dam, which will be discussed for future plannings.
Lake Trees
Did you know that most of the larger trees around the lake are Oak and Ash trees. We are seeing many of them come to their natural end of life cycle or impacted by things like construction or Oak Wilt. Many maples and other species have shorter life cycles and can be damaged by various insects and fungus as well. Therefore, we see an increasing number of trees each year die on both private and association property. One example was the Gate 2 entry tree that snapped and caused the July 2nd lake wide power outage.
And of course, every tree lost creates a long time change to both views and overall aesthetics of the lake. I know some will see this as good for the personal vantage point, however, the overall look of the lake will become more bare impacting sunrises and sunsets as well as shade and habitat for birds like the Bald Eagles.
I’m raising this topic for consideration as Janie and I recently visited Sandusky, OH where I grew up. Driving out the Cedar Point causeway to show Janie the views I was struck by the lack of trees. It was very apparent trees were not being replenished and the entire area lost some of its beauty that I remember so well.
Did you know the LLA Office has on file a list of preferred trees. A committee several years ago put this together and it’s available to all members free. If you are interested in replacing a tree, proactively planting in advance of expected loss or just want to increase the general number on your property, this list can be a big help.
My favorite will always be the big Oaks, which have a life span of 200-to-400 years depending on soil and terrain conditions. Our Burr Oak is now 11 years old and while it will take many decades to match its peers in the area, we are so glad we planted it when we did.
House Fire in X Block
Unfortunately, we’ve had another tragedy on the lake. The Gardner family, owners of X 29 lost their lake house to a fire overnight on June 25th. The great news is nobody was hurt and while a total loss, the plan is to rebuild. John mentioned in correspondence that having lived here 57 years he has seen both good and bad changes, however, one thing that has never changed is the love and support from the community. Thank you all that have taken time out to provide supplies and support for the family.
Like any event, others can benefit from the reminder about the little things in life that get missed. This is a good time to check your smoke detectors and replace batteries or the detector itself as they do have life spans. If you are like me an overdue task and I’ve gone through the house to replace batteries. In addition, have a fire escape plan meeting with your family every year. Especially with younger kids and guests when they stay over.
My personal best wishes to the Gardner family as they recover from the loss and rebuild so their family can continue to make memories on this great Pond we call Lake Lotawana.
Gas Pump / Boat Ramp Operations
Every year as new owners make Lake Lotawana a part of their life, we get requests to expand the gas pump hours. Did you know that when we acquired the gas pumps from the previous owner, we expanded the hours as a courtesy service for the Association membership.
The pump hours were established after many board meeting discussions (comes up every year) with the goal of safety and creating a good environment for operating a fine dining restaurant. Did you know the State of Missouri regulatory body requires staffing on site any hour’s the pumps are powered and operable. Since the power switch resides inside the restaurant building, we have an arrangement with the Marina 27 ownership to turn the power switch on and off daily. Therefore, the hours coordinate with their staff availability and most importantly ensure the outdoor dining at the Marina 27 enjoys no gas fumes and what sometimes can be overly rowdy members and their crew coming in hot to refill the watercraft. If you’ve ever dined on the patio, you understand why that is important. Our ask to the membership is when filling up your gas tank, remember there is a business and other homeowners in A / B block associated with the area. Please turn down music, adhere to the no-wake requirement past the buoys and in general try to avoid yelling, especially with foul language or music.
Last, if you’re new to the lake you probably don’t know we recently moved the tank to its current location and renovated the entire area including new pumps and safety barriers. A huge improvement to a nice asset for the lake community.
Courtesy Reminders
Boat Ramp Use – please make every effort not to remove or launch boats on the ramp during the busy hours for the restaurant, especially on the weekends. The first and second tier parking lots are for the Marina 27 patrons including those along the spillway guard rail. The lower lot shares the ramp entrance; therefore, any ramp activity blocks the parking lot entrance and parking spots.
In addition, if you have guests you want to pick them up at the ramp dock, that is fine. Please unload any supplies and passengers and have your guests park at the top of the hill across the road on the gravel lot.
Last, the Marina 27 group is incredibly supportive of letting boaters use their restroom facilities, but request shoes and cover ups be worn and be respectful of the patrons in the Hostess area.
Missouri Department of Natural Resources – Dredge Permit Renewed
Good news we renewed our dredging permit, thanks to Marilee and Scott completing our application to renew in a timely manner. When our dredge plan is complete, we will be able to execute without delay for regulatory approval. That planning is going well with engineering designs, studies and actual work to get our silt basins ready for dredging operations. We will have a major report at the November Budget meeting.
Sincerely,
Jeff Clemow
President