Serpent Lake Improvement District decision expected
Surveyed residents, 90 percent, of Lower South Long Lake report the lake is in better shape than it was a year ago.
For Mike O'Brien, lake resident and president of the Lower South Long Lake Improvement Association, one of the reasons for the improvement comes from the establishment of the lake improvement district three years ago.
Lake improvement districts, or LIDs, have become a point of contention at the Crow Wing County Board. A Crow Wing County Board decision to approve or deny a petition for a Serpent Lake Improvement District is expected Tuesday. Commissioners were split 2-2 when the petition was discussed in July and put the issue on the Aug. 11 agenda when a full board was expected to be present.
The South Long Lake Improvement District is in its third year. A year after the LID was formed, it was split off as a separate entity from the lake association. As with the Serpent Lake proposal, the Lower South Long LID treats the invasive aquatic species curly-leaf pondweed.
Mike O'Brien, president of the Lower South Long Lake Improvement Association, said those for and against lake improvement districts need to listen to each other. A lake improvement district was established on Lower South Long Lake in 2006 and property owners pay $80 a year to treat curly-leaf pondweed. O'Brien said he believes it's making a difference in water quality. Brainerd Dispatch/ Renee Richardson» Purchase reprints of this photo.
O'Brien said for years curly-leaf pondweed carpeted a lake bay making it virtually unusable. Last year, O'Brien said, people were on water skis in the bay. When the Lower South Long LID was proposed, O'Brien said volunteers went door-to-door providing information to property owners.
Before the LID was established, individual property owners paid $200 to treat their own lakeshore after grouping their efforts for greater economy. Now property owners within 1,000 feet of the water pay $80 a year to the LID. O'Brien said it costs the LID $30,000 to treat the curly-leaf pondweed and that is how much is raised.
When they started, O'Brien said there were critics. People didn't want to pay another tax. Others were concerned about putting chemicals in the lake. During education sessions, the lake association brought in speakers to address the biology concerns. Proponents of the LID researched other counties where improvement districts were established. On Lower South Long Lake, the DNR identified problem spots and the LID sought vendors to provide the treatment.
O'Brien said people who opposed the LID were invited to be part of it. And while O'Brien said they don't claim the treatment of curly-leaf pondweed is the only factor in water clarity, they do believe it's part of the reason.
"The clarity gets better every year," O'Brien said. "This is the best it's been in years."
The LID is also looking into organic methods to combat invasive species, such as installing more native plants and educating property owners about the importance of a more natural shoreline as opposed to a manicured lawn to the lake's edge.
"You wake up in the morning and the loons are singing and the birds are chirping," O'Brien said. "You can't buy that."
There are six established LIDs in Crow Wing County and two more are in the process. The Round Lake Improvement District is the county's oldest. It was established five years ago and is seeking an additional five years.
O'Brien said his advice to both sides of the debate with Serpent Lake is to listen to each other. Those in favor need to listen to the reasons why people are against the LID and those opposed need to educate themselves on the water treatment facts, O'Brien said. In a perfect world, O'Brien said the DNR would pay for treatment costs but the LID process lets people decide to tax themselves.
"You vote to tax yourself for the betterment of your community," he said. "You don't get that chance very often."
RENEE RICHARDSON may be reached at renee.richardson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5852.