The Newsletter of theWawasee Property

Owners Association

P.O. Box 427Syracuse, IN 46567-0427

Phone: 574.457.7172E-mail:

wpoapier0@wawaseepoa.orgWeb Address:

www.wawaseepoa.orgFax: 574.457.2907

Winter 2012

WPOA Officers & Directors

Kay YoungPresident

Carolyn AndersonSteve Snyder

James TranterVice Presidents

Janet HartleyAdministrative Officer

Kip SchummCommunications Officer

Jerry BabbAnn Bonifas

Sally GindlingFireworks Chairman

George HardieGarth McClain

Dan MorrisCindy QuinnTom Tuttle II

Bob DickinsonDavid Grandstaff

Past Presidents

The Papers IncorporatedPublisher of Lakeviews

In this Issue:• At The Helm

• 2012 Artist Announced

• The Wawasee Family Album2012 DVD is Underway!

• Syracuse-Wawasee TrailsWinter 2012 Update

• Chautauqua-Wawasee, Inc. Update

• Wawasee Property OwnersAssociation Needs You

• Wind Turbine Update

• Wawasee Area ConservancyFoundation Update

• Calendar of Events for 2012

Normally at this time of the year I would be writ-ing to tell you about all the great winter weather wewould be having, snow, ice, activities outside likeice boating, snowshoeing, snowmobiling, ice skat-ing and fishing, but not this year . . . it has been avery strange winter that is for sure. As I look outacross the lake there is ice . . . . but not very goodice and with temperatures above freezing almostevery day of this first week in February it does notlook good for ice making. I guess not having suchcold weather is not such a bad thing though, ourheating bills are lower, and as you drive around thelake you will notice lots of building going on. I amsure those that are working to complete the build-ing and remodeling projects before warmer weatherare happy to have warm winter days. The only re-gret is I have a brand new pair of snowshoes sittinghere gathering dust instead of snow . . . maybe nextyear!

Since many of you “buttoned” up your homeshere your WPOA officers and directors have beenbusy dealing with some of the issues presented withthe proposed changes at Oakwood.

In September you were sent a letter with a re-sponse card on the proposed pier changes at theOakwood . . . and respond you did! Of the over2100 letters we sent out to our property ownersover 1600 of you responded which was phenome-nal! Of the responses we received the most were notin favor of the number of proposed piers, but thegreat part was that you did not just send back yourcards, you also let us know how you felt, the major-ity of you want to see something great happen atthe Oakwood, just not in such vast numbers. I at-tended the public meeting held in Warsaw and pre-sented our views to the DNR along with many ofyour neighbors and representatives of the WACF.As of the writing of this there has been no responsefrom the DNR.

Later in the year we were again notified of a re-quest to dredge over 800’ of the lakefront at the

Oakwood area. On January 5th I again joined ap-proximately 100 interested persons at another pub-lic meeting with the DNR where we once againexpressed our concerns about this project in an avery sensitive environmental area of Wawasee, so farthere has been no response from the DNR on thisrequest either.

I also know that many of you that were not ableto attend these meetings have not been sitting idle,you have been talking with friends and neighbors,emailing your WPOA directors to let us know whatyou are thinking and what you want us to do. Thisis what the WPOA is all about, we are “dedicated tothe preservation and orderly development of Indi-ana’s largest natural lake” and we need each andevery one of you to help us in doing so.

I encourage each of you to continue to let usknow what we as an association can do for you andlook forward to hearing from you . . . feel free toemail me kayyoung47@embarqmail.com or theWPOA office at wpoapier0@wawaseepoa.org. Havea great winter, see you soon!

AT THE HELM — WINTER 2012

2012 ArtistAnnounced

We are proud to announcethat this year’s artist for theWPOA Artist series will beLawrence (Larry) Rudolech.Larry has been to Wawasee topaint with the Plein Airepainters and as such is famil-iar with the beauty of thelake.

Larry’s art ability was recognized early by his highschool art teacher who encouraged him to continuehis training after graduation. Chicago was temptingbut he couldn’t resist the atmosphere of The John

Lawrence (Larry)Rudolech

Continued on page 3

2

The Wawasee Family Album 2012 DVD Is Underway!The first of our video/interview sessions

took place on a gorgeous early October2011 weekend! Mark Gibson of Envision-ary Media, Terre Haute, IN recently sentme the “raw” footage of the weekend. Whatfun to see the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets,the swans, coots and ducks going abouttheir fall business, water vapor escapingfrom lake surface against the cattails inConklin Bay as the lake was cooling in theearly morning. Then, all the signs of “peo-ple” activity that take place each fall. Somepiers are out and stacked along the shore-line, while other piers are still in with all ofthe boats still in place and still ready for use!Some shore stations are empty and standingalone without access to piers, waiting to bepicked up and hauled out of the lake. Thereis a fishing tournament with boats pullingup to full power to “announce” their pres-ence to the fish all over the lake! Also, a sail-boat peacefully motors toward the DNRramp. The pier companies are at work.Mark videoed Sudlow’s and Rookstool’s liftremoval operations. There is a lot of workthat goes on in the fall to get everything outof the lake and ready for winter! It’s the icethat makes it necessary to remove EVERY-THING from the lake front. The power ofthe ice has cut off the bottom of at least oneboat house. The ice changes the contour ofthe shoreline by moving rocks, causingcracks in cement seawalls, and digging outlawns as it breaches the sea walls. It all de-pends on the thickness of the ice when itbreaks up and on the strength of the windas it pushes the ice shoreward. This year weare not likely to have a spring melt “iceevent” as we’ve only had an ice coveringtwice that has melted within a week offorming both times. Basically we’re only 6weeks away from the average ice free date ofMarch 15th. Therefore, we’re relying onphotographs and private residents videos toshow what winter normally is like onWawasee.

Our interviews started with Anna Sud-low, at age 99! She’s the oldest permanentresident of this area whom I know and shehas wonderful memories to share! She talksabout “harvesting” lake ice, its storage anddelivery to summer cottages for use in their“ice boxes”. She says that’s when “cottages”were really summer cottages with no indoorplumbing or electricity. Most people cameto the lake for the full summer and were inresidence by mid June for the beginning of

the fishing season! As a teenager she remem-bers the local “kids” using the Waco lakeslide as a sled run in the winter. The guyswould pour water down the grooves of theslide to freeze before climbing up to the topwith their sleds and a girl friend to slidedown and way out onto the frozen lake. Atnight they had to put out lanterns to markthe way back to Waco since there was noelectric lighting! She also talked aboutwatching the Great Wawasee Storm of July21, 1943 as it bore down on the lake claim-ing the lives of 6 young adults. Anna notedthat people need to “read” the weather. Vio-lent storms can come up on Wawasee but

there is always a warning! “Just watch thesky”, she said, “and take cover till it passes”.Getting home should not be the major goal,but getting to safety should be paramount!On a lake ringed with homes, there is reallya safe port all the way around the shoreline.

Next we went to Dick and Dot Wysong’sin the Kanata Manayunk Channels to hearabout the pleasures of living just off the lakefront with easy access to Johnson’s Bay.When Dick was a child living in SouthBend, his family frequently visited LakeSyracuse where his Grandfather MiltWysong had a home. Milt was an IndianaConservation Officer and in 1944 he wrotea book, “The Hoosier Fisherman” that fo-cused on where to fish on Lakes Syracuseand Wawasee, what bait to use, etc. Dick& Dot lived on Syracuse lake for years be-fore downsizing and moving to Wawasee.They spoke of their love for both lakes andhow it’s the same water and that the resi-dents of both lakes have the same concerns,especially about water quality.

Kay and Jim Young invited us into their343 Condo for our next interview. Kay, asPresident of the Wawasee Property Owners

Association, welcomes everyone to this newvideo adventure. Then Kay talks about herfamily’s (Spurgeon) lifelong adventures herewith parents, siblings, aunts, uncles,cousins, as well as her own children. Jimtalks about how much they enjoy condo lifeand the wonderful summer breezes thatgrace their porch all summer. He did notethat in the winter those same northwesterlybreezes turn into blasts of frigid air! Theytalked about their tradition of leaving theirpier at 8:00 sharp each Sunday morning forBoat-In-Church. Many Sundays friendsjoin them on their pontoon along with cof-fee and sweet rolls to enjoy the beautifulride and the meaningful service.

You’ll really enjoy the interview withSpike and Linda Ford of Cedar Point. Theirfamilies both had long histories at Wawaseeand were good friends as well. Spike &Linda paid little attention to one another aschildren. They tell a fun story about theweekend before their wedding some 48years ago. They were coming up the stairsout of the lake to see that the next doorneighbors were all dressed up ready to leavefor their wedding asking how they (Spike &Linda) were going to make it on time!Needless to say they were a week too early!In addition, Spike & Linda reveal a mysteryperson known fondly as “Amos” (an Indian)who once lived and died at Wawasee in themid 1700’s a full 100 years before the “trailof tears” that removed the native Indiansfrom this area.

While on the lake watching the pier/liftremovals, John Heckaman gave us an im-promptu interview about how he was fre-quently in trouble as an older child becausehe often tried stretching the adult limitsthat had been set for him! Sounds like manyyoung boys I’ve known and makes for a funmemory to be retold.

Lastly, we met Spike Ford again but thistime in the role as Coordinator of theWawasee Trails Project. He met us along theTrail at the Mud Lake bridge and overlook.He talks about Peter Nicholas being theoriginator of the Wawasee Trail concept.The concept came alive when Peter recon-figured Eli Lilly Road and provided a safewalking path alongside the road. Spiketalked about how much support they aregiven by lake property owners and otherswho value having a trail system in the areaand about the numerous grants they have

WawaseeFamily Album

2012

Continued on page 3

3

Syracuse-Wawasee Trails Winter 2012 UpdateWe are proud to report that 2011 was a

very busy and successful year for the Syra-cuse-Wawasee Trail project. With the helpof our friends at the K21 Health Founda-tion and area businesses, service organiza-tions and foundations, the McCon-nellDitch bridge was built and the connectorsfrom Wawasee High School to the Syra-cuse Village area were completed. Ease-ments were secured from property ownersat several locations along key trail routes. Aunique memorial rest area was designedand completed — with others to come.Construction of more walkway sectionsalong Eastshore Dr. on Syracuse Lake werecompleted. In addition to the Syracuse Ki-wanis Club, three families have volun-teered to help with periodic trailmaintenance and clean-up. Another hugelysuccessful WPOA Cottage Tour and ArtistSeries sale raised over $20,000 for a secondstraight year. Thanks to all our supportersand volunteers, it was a good year.

In the fall we received a surprise chal-lenge from an anonymous donor offeringto match any funds we were able to raiseup to a maximum of $10,000. We, there-fore, did a November mailing to LakeWawasee and to Syracuse Lake property

nelius Rd. to Warner Rd. and then southlinking to Eli Lilly Rd. Late last summer, asa result of having an easement requestturned down, we secured a constructionpermit for an alternate route. Shortly be-fore we were to begin construction, it cameto our attention that the property ownermight reconsider granting the easementand, therefore, we have delayed construc-tion. If the easement is granted, we wouldbe able to build the original, preferredroute. While we hope to be able to do that,one way or another, we believe we will beconstructing this link in the spring.

Since its founding in 2003, the TrailCommittee has been a part of the Syracuse-Wawasee Parks Foundation. We learnedthat there has been some concern that aportion of the donations made to the TrailCommit-tee might be diverted for townpark use. We assure you that is not the casenor has it ever been the case. We have dis-cussed how groups like ours in other partsof the country are structured to determineif reorganization might be beneficial for us.Those discussions continue but, at thistime, we remain a working committeewithin the Syracuse-Wawasee Park Founda-tion.

We have begun preliminary dialoguewith other trail groups within KosciuskoCounty. We will be investigating some in-teresting possibilities with those groups inthe coming months.

As always, we invite you to visit out web-site at www.syracusewawaseetrails.com.Feel free to contact us through Spike Fordat fordresources@embarqmail.com or at 260-856-2701.

owners. Once again, our lakes area support-ers really stepped up. As of this writing,over $23,000 in donations has been re-ceived blowing away the match goal.WOW!

Over the past couple of months we’vebegun a program looking at our fund rais-ing history to learn where our donors aregeographically located relative to our trailmaster plan. To help gather additional in-formation, our fall 2012 fundraising letterincluded space for donors to indicate areasof special interest. Based on some of the re-sponses, the Trail Committee realizes thatwe need to establish a method for ourdonors to direct their donations . . . eitherto a general fund or to accounts designatedfor specific area trail segments. That issuewill be on our agenda for the next couple ofmeetings and we will keep you updated onthe trail website.

Speaking of our website, we can bereached at www.syracusewawaseetrails.comthrough the “Contact Us” link on ourhome page. The Trail Committee is anxiousfor your input on trail issues and we will al-ways welcome your thoughts — positive ornegative. Trail Committee member MikeBuhrt handles the website and is workingon ways to make it easier for you to shareyour thoughts with us. We’ll let you knowof those developments as they occur.

In December, the Trail Committee metwith representatives of the Indiana Depart-ment of Transportation at their Fort Waynedistrict offices to discuss the State Route 13trail segment. We were impressed with howsupportive they are of trail projects such asours and how anxious they are to help usfind ways to push those projects forward.Unfortunately, they don’t anticipate anysubstantial increase in federal or state grantmoney anytime soon. We were led to be-lieve that they feel our project has meritand they urged us to continue to submitgrant applications. Despite the estimated$1.25 million cost for the Route 13 trailand the reduced potential for funding, weare going to continue to look for ways toget it built. There-fore, we have requestedan estimate from USI, an Indianapolisbased engineering firm, for a complete en-gineering and design plan for the segment.

A trail segment which seems to continueto present challenges is the link from theWawasee Boat Company, east along Cor-

Herron School of Art in Indianapolis. Beinga practical young man Larry pursued a ca-reer in Graphic Design in order to make aliving.

In the late 1990’s Larry came back to thefine arts and joined the Madison Art Clubin which he is still active. In 2001 he en-tered and was accepted into his firstHoosier Salon Show and has had work inthis prestigious show every year since, win-ning numerous awards.

As a member of the Indiana Plein AirPainters Association he feels he is beginningto nurture the artistic urges he has sup-pressed for so long as his first inspirations topaint were the country side and back roadsof his native Indiana.

We are very excited to have an artist ofLarry’s ability to be painting this year’s pic-ture for our artist series. We know that hispicture will be a great addition to the seriesand look forward to revealing it to you inour next newsletter.

2012 Artist AnnouncedContinued from page 1

Family Album 2012 DVDContinued from page 2

received. Mark videoed several people usingthe trail while we were there.

Since we’ve had no sustained snow or iceto date, Memorial Day weekend will likelybe our next major filming and interviewtime, followed by a couple of days duringthe 4th of July swell of family and friends toWawasee. I’ll keep you updated as the proj-ect continues through the spring and sum-mer. Hopefully we'll have a completedvideo by late fall — in case you are lookingfor Christmas gifts!

4

WPOA DUES RECEIPT ($50.00 per year)

Name: __________________________________________________________________________________________

Home Address: (City, State & Zip Code) ______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

Home Phone: _____________________________________ Cell Phone: __________________________________

Lake Address: (City, State & Zip Code) _______________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________ Pier No. ___________________

Lake Phone:________________________________ E-mail Address: ____________________________________

Check No.__________________________________ Check Date: ________________________________________

Lake Patrol Boat Replacement Fund: Amount of Contribution $______________________

Credit Card Payment: � Discover � MasterCard � Visa

Card Number: __________________________________________ Exp. Date (MMYY)______________________

V Code Number: ________________________________________ Total Due: $___________________________

Card Holder Signature: __________________________________________________________________________

Home Address, City, State and Zip Code: ________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________ Phone No. __________________________

Lake Patrol Boat Replacement Fund: Amount of Contribution $______________________

There is still time to pay your WPOAdues……..and be a member of one of thelargest lake associations in the state.

“What does a dues paying membershipdo for me?” One of the most importantthings the WPOA does is give you aVOICE! One example is the recent surveywe sent for the Oakwood Pier request. We

Wawasee Property Owners Association Needs YOUalso give you a voice with the DNR, theWawasee Area Conservancy, the Sheriff ’sDepartment, the Local Police, Governor’sLake Management Study Group, the StateLegislature, the BZA through the OrderlyDevelopment Committee, the Syracuse FireDepartment, the Syracuse Town Council ,Bass Masters and any other activity or or-

ganization that affects you and the lake.WE WATCH OUT FOR YOU, THELAKE, AND YOUR SAFETY!

Don’t delay, send in your check today . . .. . . . and be sure to include your email. Weare building our database so that we caneasily notify our members of important is-sues concerning the lake.

Please tear off and return: to WPOA • P.O. Box 427 • Syracuse, IN 46567

By Ann Strong

The early plans are to offer 4 weekends ofprogramming, two in July and two in Au-gust, alternating weekends beginning the4th of July Week.

Early planning also includes holdingevents “off campus,” since the propertyclosing is yet to be.

Some of the events we are looking to in-clude in this summers program are:

Arts: Artist evenings on Thursdays, Ft.Wayne Phil performance(s), cooperationwith the IPAPA (Indiana Plein Arts PaintersAssociation, Creative Fish Gallery and, craftworkshops connected with the themes of

Chautauqua-Wawasee, Inc. Updatethe educational series cooperation with Cre-ative Fish Gallery

Education: “Study” of Eli Lilly’s book,“Early Wawasee Days” with knowledgeablespeakers talking about the geological his-tory, American Indian activity in the area,pioneer experiences and then dialoguesfrom residents about the history and growthof the neighborhoods surrounding the lake.

Religion: Continuation of Boat in Wor-ship, of course, and as well as Kent Millard’sseries “Neighbors in our World” on earlySunday afternoons.

Recreation: Participation in the FlotillaRoad Race, initiation of a family event incoordination with Liberty Ride, other TBA?

C-W continues this year in response tothe desires and needs of the people in thecommunity. This project has been an inspir-ing pleasure to initiate. There are many,many wonderful ideas and plans in store forthe future generations in the communityand nation, perhaps the world.

So many of you have supported this ef-fort with ideas, enthusiasm, and participa-tion, we are also working toward the 2013expansion which has been an exciting col-laborative experience also.

Contact Face Book and share your ideas.I am looking forward to see you around thelake and at C-W events.

5

Wind Turbine UpdateWind Turbine for Wawasee School Corpora-

tion? Two sides of this question are below, onefrom Dr. Tom Edington, Superintendent of theschool corporation and one from Wawasee resi-dent Dr. Joan Szynal.

Over a year ago the committee to study a WindTurbine for the school was formed. It is com-prised of representatives of various departments atthe school, students at Wawasee and members ofthe community. The WPOA was asked to haverepresentation and Spike Ford and I have beenrepresenting the WPOA at those meetings. It hasbeen a very interesting process, the highlight ofwhich was a “field trip” to Tippecanoe ValleySchool Corporation in Mentone to see an actualturbine of the type we had been considering. Itwas a very interesting trip. The turbine is big, es-pecially when you are standing under it, as far asnoise, as the blades move there is a slight“whoosh” again as you are standing close to thestructure. When we walked back to the bus thesound was not audible. And as we drove away andit had become dark you could see the red lightblinking, much like the lights on the radio toweron the east end of Wawasee and the towers inSyracuse. Were there concerns on aesthetics fromthe committee, yes as well as financial concernsboth of which are pointed out in Dr. Szynal’s edi-torial. The committee will continue to look at op-tions to make our school corporation environ-mentally and fiscally responsible and Spike and Iappreciate the opportunity to serve on this com-mittee as your representatives. As always we lookforward to hearing from you and if you wouldlike further information the Mail Journal articlescan be found on the WPOA website.

For the last year a committee formed by Dr.Tom Edington of the Wawasee School Districthas considered placing a wind turbine on thegrounds of the school. The proposed revenuestream would benefit the school system and offsetutility costs. Initially the wind turbine was to belocated at Wawasee Middle School but issuesarose over its proximity to the weather service’sDoppler located off SR13 at the continental di-vide. The discussion has shifted to a location atWawasee High School. At the committee’s lastmeeting a few months ago, they decided that theeconomics of the wind turbine did not supportproceeding with building the unit. But theywould convene in three to six months to reviewany changes in cost or technology.

Wind turbines are being erected all across theUnited States and the debates are going strong.Proponents site this as a “green energy” sourcethat is clean. But opponents site multiple con-cerns. The real economic cost/benefit is debatable

and is the primary reason the issue was tabled, atleast for now, in this community. Consideringvariable wind speeds in the area, lack of financialincentives and available energy bonds and the costof erecting the turbine and expensive ongoingmaintenance, the outcome is not yet financiallyfavorable.

Most opposition groups cite multiple concernsabout living near a turbine including loss of sleepfrom noise and vibrations. This is especially truewithin a two mile radius of the turbine and sleepdisturbance is commonplace within a one mile ra-dius. This issue has some effect upon lake home-owners, but certainly will be problematic for thoseliving within the town of Syracuse.

Real Estate data can reveal a substantial loss ofhome and property values. And there can be sig-nificant detrimental effects on wildlife. Because ofthis The US Fish & Wildlife Service has issuedguidelines which recommend that wind turbinesshould not be installed near wetlands or nearshorelines. Songbirds primarily migrate at nightand can collide with the blades of the turbines.The turbines are a unique threat to raptors andspecifically threaten bat populations. There aresome studies that suggest bats can be effected bythe change in air pressure surrounding the hugeblades causing lung damage. But the primaryissue in our area would be loss of migratory birdssuch as ducks, eagles and our beloved sand hillcranes.

As a child growing up on Wawasee, I don’tthink I even remember seeing an eagle or sand hillcrane. But now seeing these is almost a commonoccurrence in the spring, summer and fall. Itwould be a shame to see these recovering popula-tions once again threatened. There has been men-tion in the turbine committee that we are not ona “migratory bird route.” But if this is true thenhow did the 300 ducks get to Wawasee that werein front of my cottage on a cold winter day lastmonth. I don’t think they hitch hiked!!!

And what about aesthetics!! The turbine tower

is massive at 230 feet tall. It would be visible formiles. It is 40 feet less than the 103.5 radio towerand 100 feet taller (10 stories) than the watertower on the grounds of Wawasee high school!!Although the water tower lights are visible justabove the tree line from the east shores ofWawasee and Syracuse lakes, the constant redflickering strobe light on the top of a wind tur-bine will be easily visible for those of us wantingan unobstructed view of the west. Sunsets willnever be the same!!! And we are losing our shorelines as we know them. Is there not value in thetree lined, natural unobstructed view as we gazeacross the lake? If we let one turbine be erected,what about two or three? What about a few moreradio and cell phone towers? There is legislationfor this county that outlines requirements for cellphone towers, but it may not effect this possibleplacement. More stringent regulations are re-quired.

As previously stated, the turbine issue has beentabled for the next few months. And I feel thatDr. Edington and the committee has been trans-parent about this process. I urge the communityto consider the ramifications a structure such asthis will have upon the area for the next 20 yearsor longer. But I urge all of you to stay involvedand let committee members know how you feel.Your voice does matter!!!

Dr. Joan Szynal

Photo was provided by the TippecanoeValley School Corporation.

A Wind Turbine for Wawasee?The Wawasee Community School Corporation has formed a community committee to study erec-

tion of a wind turbine behind the high school I Syracuse. Why a wind turbine? Proceeds from the saleof electricity can bring an additional $150,000 to $200,000 annually for the next twenty-five or moreyears to our school general fund. Wind turbines are not cheap! Ours would cost $2.5 million, paid forover five years at 1.75% interest rate. Wind turbines are not small! Ours would rise 325 feet to the tipsof the blades, which turn slowly at a constant rate. The location is about two miles from Syracuse andWawasee lakes. The committee hopes to complete its research and make a recommendation to theWawasee Board of School Trustees by the spring. Your thoughts can be e-mailed to me at teding-ton@wawasee.k12.in.us

Tom Edington, Superintendent, Wawasee Community Schools

6

By Heather Harwood,WACF Executive Director

The Wawasee Area Conservancy Founda-tion (WACF) celebrated a 20th anniversarylast summer. Over the last 20 years, WACFvolunteers have worked hard to maintaingood water quality in our watershed. OurWawasee watershed straddles the countyline between Kosciusko and Noble Coun-ties covering 23,618 acres includingWawasee, Syracuse, Bonar, Papakeechie andthe ten lakes in upper Turkey Creek.

trips have become increasingly popular andour canoe guys, and gal, always make thetrip fun. The morning starts with local In-dian history and a view of wetlands from aWACF-owned glacial moraine. We canoedown Turkey Creek through ten mostlypristine lakes that flow from the continentaldivide, The trip ends at Village Lake whereyou can check out the latest in WACF wear.The DNR has called this one of the bestcanoe trails in Indiana. Forty-three percentof Wawasee/Syracuse lake water comes fromthis source, much of it is spring fed.

Thank you for the response to our earlierletter notifying the public of the DNRhearings on the proposed dredging andgroup piers at Oakwood. WACF appreciatesall who attended the hearings, those whospoke of their particular concerns, andthose who had to stand at the back of theroom for the two hour sessions. As of thewriting of this article, there has been no an-nouncement from the DNR on a decision.WACF tries to anticipate and solve threatsto our watershed and its water quality.These requests are of great concern and weencourage you to share your concerns withthe DNR: Attn: Michael W. Neyer, P.E.,Director, IDNR, Division of Water, 402West Washington Street, W264, Indianapo-lis, IN 462-4. Email: MNeyer@dnr.IN.gov.

Pollution Control projects — working

Our Education Center has been ex-panded for meetings indoors, or outdoorsin the Ruddell Pavilion. The 38-acre prop-erty on Conklin Bay has a new trail, miti-gated and enhanced wetlands and naturalshoreline on Wawasee. Join us this summerfor “Lake Talks and Eats” the first Saturdaysof June thru August. These programs are forthe public to come and explore topics of in-terest with us. Last year’s topics included afishermen’s report with the day’s catch, re-sponsible yard care, lake turn-over by Dr.Nate Bosch, Kosciusko Lakes and Streamsof Grace College, and a kid’s Bug Catch.

This summer was our 15th year of Fri-day morning canoe trips along TurkeyCreek and the 10-lake chain. The canoe

with property owners and the DNR Lakeand River Enhancement, is a big part ofwhat we do. From agricultural runoff to de-velopment impacts and funneling, WACFtries to help solve problems and keep themfrom becoming BIG problems. Recently werestored Martin Creek Pond, upstream ofthe Leeland Channels to help keep sedi-ment out of the channel and ultimately thelake (see photos below center). At theWACF Education Center, a grant from theKosciusko County Community Foundationwas used to restore the wetland behind theCenter. (See before/after photos below).

Wetland plants have been planted in andaround the new restored wetland and pondarea.

Dillon Creek is the #1 sediment contrib-utor to Wawasee. It flows from the Crom-well area through farmland, dropping 100feet in 2 1/2 miles, before entering the lake.The Elkhart River Restoration Association(ERRA) partnered with WACF on a GreatLakes Commission (GLC) grant, and alongwith a grant from LARE, will aim to con-trol sediment in Dillon Creek and otherareas. We are grateful to be working withthe ERRA, the GLC and LARE.

The DNR has been working to controlStarry Stonewort in Wawasee with the helpof federal funds through the Great Lakes

Wawasee Area Conservancy Foundation Update

WACF Education Center

Friday morning canoe trips thru the 10lake chain.

WACF Center Restored Wetland BEFORE

WACF Center Restored Wetland AFTER

Martin Creek Pond Restoration

7

Restoration Initiative. Starry Stonewortshowed up on a channel off Johnson Bayfour years ago, and has spread to severalareas and over 90 acres in Wawasee. We

hope to continue to work on controlling it.Thank you to all our volunteers and local

marinas that make our work possible. Pleaselet us know if you have questions or com-

ments. Write to: WACF, PO Box 548, Syra-cuse, IN 46567. Phone 574-457-4549 orFax 574-457-4432.E-Mail: info@wacf.com.

Starry Stonewort Surveylocatrions in Wawasee

WILL IT RETURN? — It has not been theseason for ice fishermen, so far, as Mother Na-ture has yet to provide the temperatures tofreeze over area lakes for continuous ice fishingadventures. Fishermen were able to get on theice the last week or so, but that ended Mondayevening when the 40 degree temperatures madethe ice thinner than it already was. While thereis no such thing as “safe ice,” fishermen werereporting 3 inches in places last week.

Forecasts by the National Weather Service,Northern Indiana, are not showing any tem-peratures cold enough for the making of anyice.

Shown are a small handful of ice fishermenin the Macy Slip area on Wawasee Lake, anarea which normally has been turned into asmall village by this time in past winters.(Photo by Deb Patterson, The Mail-Journal)

Winter 2011

Winter 2012

P.O. Box 427 • Syracuse, IN 46567-0427

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Syracuse, INPermit No. 7

Calendar of Events for 2012May 19 WPOA Board of Directors MeetingMay 28 WPOA Directory DeliveredJune 9 WPOA Board of Directors Public Meeting (Syracuse Community Center)

June 23 WPOA/SLA Family Breakfast (Syracuse Community Center)June 30 Patriotic Pops (Oakwood Grounds, 7:30 PM)

July 4 Fireworks — Syracuse LakeJuly 6-8 Plein Air Painters Week-end

July 7 WPOA FireworksJuly 14 WPOA Board of Directors MeetingJuly 28 WPOA Cottage Tour

August 11 WPOA Board of Directors MeetingAugust 18 WPOA Annual Dinner

September 8 WPOA Board of Directors Meeting