Milton Mayor Wesley Meiss plans to meet with citizens living near Locklin Lake about it’s deteriorating condition.
”The people are concerned for several things, over the years the silt has built up and its really shallow now…its caused a lot of vegetation,” Meiss said. “The lake is not what it once was.”
The mayor plans to address residents concerns about the lake’s deteriorating condition with a public meeting, which will include city officials.
One of the concerned residents is Bruce McDonald, who has resided along the lake with his wife, Tonya for the past eight years.
“I have seen it go downhill since I was a boy,” McDonald said. “It used to be crystal clear and it used to be a lot deeper.”
Meiss said Locklin Lake is of historical significance.
“Locklin Lake is where Milton began in 1829,” he said.
Benjamin Jernigan, credited as the founder of Milton, built a water-powered saw mill which led to forming the lake. The mill is credited with giving Milton its current name, according to an article published by the Press Gazette. In early maps the area was know, as “Jernigan’s Landing,” then later known as “Mill-town” and eventually, Milton.
The dam built in conjunction with the saw mill helped form the lake.
The lake, located between Berryhill Road and Park Avenue, has since become a central point for storm water runoff.
“Over the years in the development of Milton, a lot of the storm water runoff goes into the lake,” Meiss said.
Although it continues to feature wildlife − including geese, fish and beavers, the lake also accumulated trash and chemical pollutants all of which are visible from McDonald’s residence on Park Lane.
McDonald and his wife, Tonya regularly collect trash around their property, stemming from a nearby drainage pipe.
“People throw trash on the road, the rain washes it down the storm drain and it ends up here in this lake,” McDonald said. “I have seen ducks with plastic holders around their necks.”
In addition to environmental problems, the current status of Locklin Lake – which is accessed solely by the land owners –is also effecting the housing market in the area.
“This is the only lake within city limits,” McDonald said. “It should be a shining example of the achievements from the mill site in the length of time it’s been here, but instead it’s a detriment to home pricing. Most of the homeowners are well underwater versus the value of what we can sell it for…because nobody wants to buy a home on a lake that is kind of defunct.”
Meiss wants to explore all options available in order to repair the lake.
“Those residents will be getting a notice in the mail about a meeting,” Meiss said. “My task is to pull these people together and find out how we can tackle this head on.”
Meiss said one option is to seek funding in order to dredge the lake, which would help with the silt build up.
McDonald, who said other nearby homeowners are interested in improving the lake’s conditions, is also in favor of dredging the lake.
“Dredging would definitely return the lake back to its normal depth,” McDonald said.
McDonald also suggests purchasing grass-eating carp, which would control the weeds within the lake.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Mayor Meiss calls for meeting about condition of Locklin Lake