Cascade Water Alliance, Citizens Draft Lake Tapps Management Plan

In a follow-up to the , met with residents and community leaders to present a draft of short- and long- range planning in a public meeting on March 16.

Top priorities for the plan included boater speed and noise, rule enforcement, public access and use, safety around and on the lake, parking, use of community volunteers and rafting regulations.

In the plans, Cascade admits it is trying to do more with less – the dismal and county budgets are trimming already tight resources. Budget projections for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department Marine Services Unit and Pierce County Parks Department are low, due to a drop in vessel registration fees. This will impact the amount of services both departments will be able to provide throughout the recreation season.

The Sheriff Marine Unit will have to focus it’s resources on ‘primary’ responsibilities this summer, meaning enforcement will not always be available to regulate trespassing violations on dikes, which residents said was a huge issue on the lake. To meet 2011 cuts, Pierce County Parks Department will be cutting hours at the Lake Tapps North Park; the park will be closed on Wednesdays and Thursdays for the 2011 season.

The management group discussed alternative options to help create water safety awareness, including posting signs warning of water temperature and drowning risks, or random Sheriff lake patrols during the evening. Extra funds for this could come from HOA fees, since it was determined most of the noise comes from lake residents and their visitors.

Cascade Water Alliance also admitted that it is not immune to cuts. The non-profit organization is responsible for operations, maintenance, planning and infrastructure improvements to Lake Tapps but states it cannot serve as a ‘source for general government funds,’ meaning it will be unable to mitigate lost county services.

For more information on long and short-term planning for Lake Tapps and what to expect in the 2011 recreation season, check out the attached PDFs for more information and the handouts from the March 16 meeting.

The Collaborative Plan for Managing Lake Tapps has not been finalized and is currently undergoing a public review process. If you have comments that you would like to share concerning what is or is not addressed in this draft Plan, please submit them by March 25, 2011 via:

Email: comments@enviroissues.com

Mail:

Lake Tapps Management Plan

C/o EnviroIssues

101 Stewart Street, Suite 1200

Seattle, WA 98101