Dear Members,
Just a friendly reminder that both of the SAD hearings are this week. Southarm Township is Wednesday May 7th at 5pm at Southarm Twp Hall and Echo Township is at 7pm on Thursday May 8th at Echo Township Hall. These have been formalities so far as most Six Mile Lake property owners seem satisfied with PLM’S assessment and management of Six Mile Lake. We have many new members now who may not be familiar with the how and why of how this came to be but briefly Six Mile Lake faced an onslaught of an invasive weed called eurasian milfoil that formed dense mats in the south and north areas of the lake that made navigation nearly impossible. Initially, treatment costs per parcel were approximately $270 but have gone down every single year to around $75 per parcel. The SAD (special assessment district) stays in place because we never know what invasive will surface next and the SAD assures us we will have the funds for PLM to use Initially in the early summer (and need be later if necessary) to keep our lake in shape.
Some news about the flooding on the Upper Chain…your board has been working to get the commissioners to pay attention to the dire situation here and, finally, with our new Dam operator Leslie Meyers at the helm, the commissioners voted unanimously to authorize her to take much needed action to pursue both funds and remedies and communications with the powers that be. We also have a new Ellsworth Village president, Jerry Rasmussen, that is also involved and so we will be reporting good news as it comes in.
We continue to lobby against the very destructive ‘wakeboats’ that currently pose a severe threat to shorelines, fisheries, and other watercraft. These specialty boats are weighted down with thousands of gallons of water in their ballasts forcing the boat deep into the water and creating huge wakes that can be ‘surfed’ behind at a speed of under 10mph. They are an absolute menace on smaller, shallower lakes like Six Mile Lake. Know that the owners of these boats can be held liable for the damage they inflict in the name of having ‘fun’. Last year our north loon platform and one of the buoys were dislodged and tangled together and found floating about two hundred feet away from their prospective locations. There is currently ongoing legislation to address the use of these boats and the damage they cause. Meanwhile, both our members and residents, need to remain active and engaged in educating friends, family and neighbors that Six Mile Lake is a ‘no wakeboat’ lake.
Because of the flooding here, residents returning for the summer may be missing docks or swim platforms. Currently a jet ski platform has washed up on a board member’s property and a 40′ dock floated away. Most everything is easily recovered with a boat trip around the lake.
Both of our loon platforms are occupied now with the banded resident pair returning to the north platform. Just so you know, we remove the south platform within a few days of the chicks arrival. However the north platform isn’t removed until July 5th because those loons and their chicks continue to use the platform and gives them a safe place to return to after the July 4th fireworks display on St. Clair Lake when thirty plus boats are journeying back to Six Mile Lake in the dark.
In closing, the Ladies of the Lakes meets for breakfast the first Tuesday of every month at 10am at the Front Porch Restaurant in Ellsworth and our first Six Mile Lake Association meeting/brunch is Saturday. JUNE 14th at 10am at the Pleasant Valley Free Methodist Church. Leslie Meyers, Antrim County Dam Operator will be the guest speaker.
See you there!
Cherie Hogan
Membership/Communications