Utah Lake Commission

[mike loeser]

Disappointed to not see anyone out at the meeting. They have decided to fill in the lake and build condos, since that is what all the real estate developers are wanting and pushing. This way the highway across the lake won't be needed. All the water will be piped down to Las Vegas. It could happen!
Seriously, I find that we missed a great opportunity to have our voices heard on the future of the lake. They seemed very receptive to the ideas that I tried to put forth and wanted to know which sites have potential for windsurfing/kiting. From what I understand the Paragliders have had to fight hard to keep their site open with multi million dollar developments itching for the land they use. If we don't do something we also might lose the spots we currently have. I was the only one under the age of 60 that attended, so who do you think they will hear the loudest?
I still encourage everyone to fill out the survey.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=rAvGBCYauL7aitM2chMm_2bA_3d_3d
They had computers at the open house for everyone to fill out, so I think they really value what people have to say on the survey.

A couple of thing that I tried to push were:
Upkeep on the current sites. Talked about the damage done by the crimson napes at all the current sites. Pallet burning, nudists, pagan rituals and such.
Phragmites (the reeds) control at launch sites.
Options for access on the East side.
Beach work at the Provo Marina and by the Airport.
Keeping access open to South Sandy Beach. This could close anytime the landowner wants (It is on private land), which it sounds like he is tempted to do! There is talk of having a private marina there. This is one more reason to get involved before it is too late.
Vehicle access to these sites.

Probably missed some more things.

Some encouraging things that I saw from what they were working on:
They have the idea of extending the Lindon beach area down into Vineyard, with the cleanup of the Phragmites, and more Po Po patrols of the beaches.
The Mayor of Provo, Biggs?, would like to have the area along the Provo airport road to look like it did a few years ago with the drought. This was sand for miles a few years back. Great side shore winds, launch was excellent and you could downwind it forever without having to worry about getting in over your head. I was learning at the time (still am it seems) and it made for a great intro. Problem was the vehicle access was sketchy. It was kind of a honeymooners spot where you'd see couples walking down the beach at sunset. Romantic way to get your wife/gf to let you kite.
The map included a site on the east side that looked to include sandy beaches, but also had a marina planned.
Carp and Phragmites control.

The bad:
Lincoln Beach being expanded into a bigger marina, with a focus on sport fishing and powerboats. The plan also included RV sites for overnight camping. This could be good if done right, or harmful if the beach is loaded with fisherman. Plus any site that is going to increase the number of people isn't such a great thing for kiting. We don't need an accident with a fisherman or some swimmer.
South Sandy being a private marina. Sorry but I don't want to have to pay to launch and who knows what the site will end up looking like. Especially if it does become residential. The owner wanted/s to dredge the area and have homes with private boat docks. Not so windrider friendly! Luckily real estate is horrible right now.
Provo bay being off limits to boats. I don't know if this would include us or not. Don't think many of us go over that far, but as a wakeboarder this stinks. Some of the flattest water you will find.

Some of the proposed ideas go either way:
Bridge across the north end of the lake. Would make it quicker to get to the east side, but might get in the way.
Building islands for bird watchers or parks in the middle of the lake.
Retail development around the Provo harbor and Vineyard.
East side freeway.

Utah lake access is currently 90% private. The communities surrounding the lake, if pushed to develop these parks, would purchase access. If there isn't a proposed need most land owners plan on putting in subdivisions. With the success of some of these lake front living areas like Saratoga Springs, the lake has some issues facing it.
I agree with Billy that we need to maintain the current spots we do have, but as of right now we may be in danger of losing SSB and Lincoln due to these proposed changes. If this commission doesn't know that these are valuable spots to the UWA they could get wiped out. I rode at Lindon beach the other day and for the first time I saw families actually enjoying that 20ft stretch of sand. Not the typical redneck trash I normally see. Lindon invested very little to get that beach cleaned up to where it is usable. I know the wind sucks there, but that is one of three or four spots that have public access on the whole lake. A few more spots like Lindon and Lincoln are easily done because they provide so much for the local communities - including quality of life issues, real estate values and such. It pays itself for towns to invest in these types of projects. They are basically begging people to tell them where they are wanted.
It is unfortunate that this lake has been neglected for so long. Talking to my wife later that night about this whole thing, she still doesn't believe me there are sandy beaches at Utah lake. It could be made such a better place, both for windriders and everyone in the communities around it. Just like the issue at Rush with the fence in the lake, something simple done like that to Utah Lake could ruin the area for us all. The squeaky wheel gets the grease.
That's my rant about the whole thing. Again, please take the survey and post your comments to them. They sound like they are open to any ideas people have. I spoke with the executive director Reed Price and he gave me his email address. If you have anything to add please consider sending him a polite email. rprice @utahlakecommission.org his phone is (801) 851-2900. I am now on the email list so I hope that whenever the next meeting is we will have more representation from the UWA lobby. Sorry, I'm not much for politics as it seems everyone else here is, but I would like a bit of help here. I don't want to be launching off a rock jetty in the future!

Mike L.

[Mark Johnson]

Nice post Mike!
I will fill out a survey ASAP!

[Spencer R]

Filled it out.

[Rick McClain]

Thanks Mike,
A great report. We definitely need to have a better turnout for these meetings. I fully intended to go, but totally spaced it out at the last moment. We are going to have an uphill battle to retain our launch sites. I've seen this problem with hangliding, motorcycle trail riding, and other sports. If people don't speak up, they lose their recreational rights to others that do. I filled out the survey several days ago, and spent a lot of time doing it. I think the communities around the lake ought to acquire access so there are public beaches, marinas, etc. about every two to five miles along the shoreline in the future. The lake is a great resource that, in the future, they will wish they had developed for public use while they had the chance. As the population grows, the value of it for recreation will too.
Rick McClain

[RickHeninger]

MIKE!!!

Thanks so much for going! We were in the Gorge just wishing we could be here... for the meeting ... So I was hoping that somebody would go... That's great that you went.

I've emailed our requests to the committee and I hope that they will keep our suggestions in mind as they develop around the lake.

We'll continue to voice our concerns with the Parks management and with utah legislators. Mike, if you'd like to write up a petition of sorts that we can post on here and create a signature database to send that'd be great. Since you went to the meeting, you have a good idea of what's going on.

Thanks again. Seriously, I'm so glad somebody went. In fact, call me sometime soon. 801-635-6699.

Rick.