Twin Lakes Association
Biannual Meeting
August 6, 2022
The meeting was called to order by President Grant Bogle at 10:05 am at Isola Bella with approximately 50 members in attendance.
The first order of business was an update on lake management by Executive Vice President, Bill Barton. Bill discussed the invasive weed treatment in June that, by all observations, was successful in terms of controlling invasive weeds. Bill then discussed the need to submit a three-year lake management plan to the DEEP and that we have had preliminary planning meetings about the content of this plan with our lake management consultant, AER. The plan will be created in the fall for submission in early 2023. In addition to developing the plan, the recently conducted rare plant study will be augmented and combined with the other lake quality studies we have conducted previously. This work will be done by AER.
Bill proposed a motion that the association membership permit the board to spend up to $25,000 of TLA funds to support lake management initiatives such as the three-year plan, environmental studies, and lake treatments. The motion was seconded and approved by unanimous consent. The use of this money will require board approval and only be spent once the funds allocated to Twin Lakes by Salisbury are expended.
Bill then proceeded to update the membership on lake level management (capably managed by Fred Schmidt). Due to the shortage of rain, the lake level is down by about 3 ½ inches but, this is not unusual for this time of year. The town of Salisbury has also arranged for Gordon Whitbeck to control lake levels in the winter months when Fred is down south.
Board member Russ Conklin discussed the ongoing monitoring of zebra mussels. There are 6 “monitoring stations” around East Twin that will help us assess the level of infestation this year. It is too early to draw conclusions about how this year compares to last. Russ also indicated that the clarity of water in Twin Lakes is very good, in fact, clearer than it has been in years. This may be due to zebra mussels (they filter the water), the fact that we have had less rain which has contributed to less runoff into the lake (which makes the water cloudier) or a combination of factors. We continue to test the water quality monthly and send the information to our lake management company, AER for monitoring and analysis. A synthesized report is sent to the state each year. Past water quality reports can be found on the TLA website.
Russ indicated that the “skimmer” for West Twin has been ordered and should arrive by the end of August. The skimmer has been fully paid for by earmarked donations to the TLA from residents on West Twin with one half of the cost already sent to the manufacturer. When delivered, the skimmer will be donated to the town which will assume responsibility for the operation and maintenance of the skimmer. The intent is to use it on West Twin this fall to “learn” how it is best used and to expand use across the community in the coming seasons. As in the past, residents of West Twin have made earmarked donations to cover the hourly cost of operation for weed harvesting and use of the skimmer this fall.
Jean Bell gave a Treasurer’s report. As of August 5, the TLA had a balance of $162, 187.33 in checking and $64,703.77 in CD’s. It is important to note that within the checking account, there are earmarked funds of $57, 135.50 for the balance payment on the skimmer (we paid ½ of the cost of the skimmer earlier this summer when ordered) and another $30,000.00 earmarked for weed harvesting and/or skimming on West Twin. This leaves our “true balance” of
$139, 755.60 between checking and CD’s. Dues from beach club members amounted to $3,950.00 and are in the process of being deposited and are not reflected in the above TLA balance.
Eric Stoer gave an update on membership which we believe approximates 340 members. This number fluctuates throughout the summer. It is noted that there are many homeowners around the lakes that are nonmembers, and we agreed a more proactive outreach to nonmembers is needed.
Dan gave an update on communications and announced the winners of this summer’s photo contest. The results and many of the pictures submitted to the competition can be found on the TLA website. Thanks to all who participated.
The meeting adjourned at 11 am and was followed by a picnic and corn hole competition. Fun was had by all. Twin Lakes Day then ensued, thanks to the hard work of Justin Meyer and Sharon Aiuvalasit who organized and ran the event. Photos of this year’s Twin Lakes Day competition can also be found on the TLA website.
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