Big Cedar Property Owners Association
July 2021 Newsletter – 2
PRD ELECTION
The election for two open seats for commissioners on the Big Cedar Protection and Rehabilitation District (PRD) is four weeks away. Please plan to cast your vote on Wednesday, August 25, 2021. These positions are important as the commissioners manage many services and regulations on the lake. The PRD will be sending detail information about the agenda. We believe the meeting will start at 4:30 and voting will begin about 5:30 PM. Each voter can cast a vote for two (2) candidates.
The PRD is responsible for lake management including, weed cutting and pickup, lake patrol, lake regulations such as speed limit and time of day as well as no wake zones. The PRD also contracts for garbage collect for all homes within the PRD district.
We are aware of two individuals who are running for the two open seats, Dave Claussen and Ross Anderson. Dave is currently a PRD commissioner and is running for reelection. Ross is an attorney and has lived on the lake for many years. He was on the West Bend School Board and served as president of that board. The POA is pleased that the field of candidates includes Dave and Ross as we believe both would serve the PRD and residents well.
At this time, the POA is not endorsing specific candidates. We think it is appropriate to wait to see if other candidates come forward before formally endorsing anyone.
PRD MEETING
At the PRD meeting on July 21, the plan to dredge and clean out the Genthe retention pond was discussed. Due to the cost, the proposal to dredge and improve the support structure of the Genthe retention pond will be voted on at the PRD annual meeting on August 25. The cost of the work is expected to be up to $80,000.
Support for a Washington County – Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) coordinator was discussed. In years past, the DNR had one Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) coordinator for Washington County. That changed this year, such that the AIS Coordinator has responsibility for several counties. The PRD would like to get financial support from the various PRDs and towns in the county to have Washington County have a dedicated DNR AIS Coordinator. A team of commissioners was named to work on that project, with the goal to have that in place for 2022. The POA supports this initiative.
Preliminary work is underway to consider the Town of West Bend handling the garbage collection for the PRD resident that is within the Town of West Bend. Currently, the garbage collection for residents in the PRD district is managed by the PRD. No decision has been made, and significant investigation and evaluation will be done before changes are made. By adding roughly 700 more homes to the existing town garbage contract, a lower cost per home might be negotiated. Combining recycling and garbage could reduce the truck traffic on roads. A major issue to be resolved is how garbage collection would be done for the Town of Polk residents currently served by the PRD collection service. Several options are possible. To repeat, NO decision has been made, at this stage, the town is gathering information and sharing that with the PRD.
DNR
A recent report from the DNR indicated 310,000 powerboats were sold in 2020. There are 621,114 registered boats in Wisconsin. Unfortunately, there have been 16 boating deaths in Wisconsin so far this year.
Lake Resident – Athletes
Two local athletes are enjoying tremendous experiences and sporting competitions this summer.
Alie Rusher, the daughter of lake residents Cindy and Jack Rusher made the Olympic rowing team. She is competing in the Women’s Quadruple Sculls. We wish her the best of luck at the Olympics.
Ellie Zagel, the daughter of lake residents Penny and Troy Zagel, qualified in the triple jump and 4×100 m relay for the AAU Junior Olympics Games in Houston July 28 thru August 7. We wish her luck in this national track and field competition.
POA Membership Dues
At this time of year, POA directors are going through their neighborhoods soliciting for POA membership. An important part of this process is for residents to let these POA representatives know how they feel about any lake issues and concerns they have. Please take the opportunity to talk with your POA representative.
Big Cedar POA activities include:
- support for the fishing club stocking program
- at DNR request, formed focus group for Big Cedar pan fishing study
- support for 4th of July Fireworks
- on behalf of POA members, work with PRD on weed cutting and pickup
- working with residents on traffic/speed measures on Hwy 144
- support for Biodiversity and other bird and animal studies on Big Cedar
- support for clean water and invasive species control programs
- working with Cedar Communities to preserve the natural state of the shoreline
- serve as resource and information source for members for a variety of lake issues
- communication to members through newsletters, email, and meetings to give residents information about lake news as well as PRD and town actions
The $20 membership dues can be paid online through our website ( Big Cedar POA ). Use the “ONLINE PAYMENT” tab and follow the directions. The payment uses a secure bank processing system. We appreciate your membership and continued support for the Big Cedar POA.