Comments by Blitzen
Page 1 of 1
Posted on June 5 at 6:24 a.m.
Engineering studies are pretty much standard fare here. Any time you move water, there are lots of liabilities and concerns to address.
The DNR is involved, and often time the Corps of Engineers must be consulted. If there are any Fish and Wildlife easements downstream, those will also come into play in regard to when you can move water, and how much.
After the engineering studies are done, the county will often hire a ditch viewing crew to determine who benefits and to what extent from lowering the water level. At this point, it gets to be redundant, IMO, but it still is a hurdle to be passed if you want the water to be moved.
The county has done a pretty good job on a couple of past projects, so they do know what they are doing.
Looking at the numbers, it looks to be a pretty cheap soloution. Without it, there could be lawsuits and court injunctions. Now THAT would get expensive.
The South Turtle Lake project cost about $350,000 for a comparison.
Posted on May 21 at 2:29 p.m.
I not so sure the feedlots created this issue. It seemes more likely that the demand for pork and beef created this issue. There would be no feedlots if there was not a demand for the end product.
I think that Commissioner Block is on the right track with blending this job into an existing one.
Ditch inspector and weed inspector come to mind.....
I am curious as to when a barnyard becomes a feedlot. If there are 600 feedlots in the county, that seems to me to include most small farms. I wonder what kind of regulation the county has in mind here? If they start messing with the small time farmer, the potential to hurt small communities and township economies is very real.
Posted on April 10 at 12:49 p.m.
Wow. The beefmobile! When is the Lutefisk Limo coming?
Posted on March 27 at 4 p.m.
I came across this as I left for the cities about 1:30 Wednesday morning. There was a car parked on a tight turn, with one set of wheels over the fog line on the highway.
It struck me as odd, but it just looked to me to be some seasonal cabin owner making a springtime visit.
From what I saw, I'd venture the deputy was just going to ask them to get their car all the way off the highway.
Posted on June 20 at 11:53 a.m.
Sorry if I came off a bit harsh, but you get edgy when you house is in danger.
Do a search on the Journal site, and there is a fair amount of stuff to read about going back to 2001 or 2002.
Posted on June 20 at 10:50 a.m.
Organize ourselves? Really, now. Perhaps you should educate yourself. We have been rather organized for the last 8 years trying to solve this problem. There has been a lake association formed, and out of that came the formation of the Lake Improvement District (LID). We pumped for 4 years, and that did solve the problem for a short time, but the DNR and US Fish and Wildlife directed us to find a permanent soloution. At this point the county stepped in and the storm water district was formed. This project is being implemented by the county, not the residents. The residents will pay for it, however. If it were that simple to just pass the hat and pay off the Gerhardsons, it would have been done. Lord knows, $124 would seem a cheap way to get this done when we have probably spent in excess of $200,000 to pump in past years. This is the county's issue to negotiate with them, not the lake residents. If you want something to shake your head over, consider that the Gerhardson property will flood out like everyone else in the lake basin should this project stall out. Then what will their property be worth? Your statement that the residents have been "sitting on their hands" could not be farther from the truth. Many volunteer hours, blood, sweat and tears have been expended. Give me a break.....
Posted on June 14 at 12:27 p.m.
...Not so rare actually. Simple topography.
When most of the land was platted and developed the area was in an extended dry cycle. Now, we are in a high water cycle.
I don't believe there was any purposful wrongdoing on any agency or indvidual part.
The fact remains is there is a problem, and it is at crisis level. It is bigger than North and South Turtle. Johnson, Crooked, Pebble, Bass Elbow to name just a very few. Throw in the numerous county and township roads in the area also.
Just lettting nature take is course in many situations is not viable.
Posted on June 14 at 11:20 a.m.
The ordinary high water level is determined by the DNR. Setback on a particular parcel is governed by Land and Resource on the county level. These properties were built with the blessing of the county. Rather unfair of you to place this the shoulders of the owners and developers, IMO.
You can't put this horse back in the barn, sir. It's much too late for that. Kudos to the county for stepping up to the plate and pushing for a resoloution.
Let's let the lake raise another 6-8 feet so it will flow naturally. Let's allow all that proptery, roads, and septic systems go under. Let's kill two local business ventures also. I'm sure you'll be more that willing to pick up your share when that tax base disappears into the water....
Posted on June 14 at 6:40 a.m.
If it is money the Gerhardson's are seeking, it appears to be short sighted and selfish. I wonder how they can sleep at night? People are loosing their investments and are suffering.
Looking at a USGS topo map, their property appears to be nearly an island already. Looking at Google Earth, it is even more dramatic looking. Should the water continue to rise, they will flood out, just like everybody else. In the end, how much will that cost?
The pressure on roads, homes, and septic systems cannot last much longer.
Page 1 of 1
Posted on June 22 at 6:04 a.m.
I am curious if this is related to the high water in Iverson Lake that has been written about recently.
On Iverson Rest Area Closed