HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem #11 of June 2 Council meeting------not necessary to read at Meeting_
Christian, Kevin
From:john <john@smigelski.org>
Sent:Tuesday, June 2, 2020 5:08 PM
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Item #11 of June 2 Council meeting------not necessary to read at Meeting.
Dear Mayor and City Council Members,
The Friends of Laguna Lake are discouraged to read that due to the financial impact of the Covid 19 pandemic
the Laguna Lake Dredging and Sediment Management Project will not be funded in the coming year. You will
understand our frustration given the time and effort that has been expended by the city staff and the community
over the years to get the project this far. Over $500,000 has been spent obtaining the permits to allow sediment
removal this year. Under-budget bids have been received from qualified bidders. So close and yet so far.
These are extraordinary and uncertain times. We appreciate the need for the Meta City Goal that focuses on
Economic Stability, Recovery and Resiliency. Reviewing the 10 key strategies we believe that the sediment
removal program for Laguna Lake supports strategies 5 and 9.
Many consider recreational opportunities an essential activity in this time of social distancing and we have
observed many more people enjoying the safe recreational opportunities that the lake provides. Laguna Lake is
a place of natural beauty and provides a quality recreational opportunity that needs to be nurtured and advanced.
Sediment removal can be considered a required maintenance activity for an important resource as it addresses
the flooding potential due to deposits in Perfumo Creek and build-up in the lake. The project also supports
wildfire safety as sediment build up is making it increasingly difficult for CalFire to use the lake as a source of
water to fight nearby wildfires.
We would like to see the dredging program proceed in the current budget but if you are unable to do so, please
recognize the difficulties and expensive of obtaining permits as 2 years of the 5-year permit will have
elapsed. Please direct staff to work with the permitting agencies to extend the length of the permits for
sediment removal.
There are several grant opportunities that have been discussed with staff that can improve access to the lake and
recreational opportunities. Staff should be encouraged to pursue grant opportunities as leverage funding can
provide a boost to the local economy.
We also want to express our hope that this project will be one of the first to be restarted as soon as some sort of
normality returns or if there are funds made available as part of any fiscal stimulus project. If any project meets
the definition of “shovel ready”, this is it!
Thank you for considering this request.
Rob Davidson
John Smigelski
Friends of Laguna Lake
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