NLA ANNUAL MEETING JUNE 12, 2021
Meeting opened at 9:30 am by Rick Lindner
Drawdown Report – Gordy Christians
Drawdown was recommended in 2019. After a lengthy approval process, a 4’ drawdown was completed between September 15, 2020 and March 15, 2021. The primary reason for the drawdown was to improve fish habitat. As a side benefit, the dam was inspected and stop logs replaced, boat landing pads were fixed and the culvert on Jolly Fisherman Road was lowered to allow fish to swim through to spawn.
Gordy described the difficulty of lifting the stop logs which hadn’t been touched in 83 years! Lowering the culvert and fixing the boat landing pads also were major undertakings requiring heavy equipment.
Observations: drawdown took longer than expected but the refill took less time than expected. There is a surprising amount of wood in the lake (= fish habitat). The population of snails was reduced. Vegetation also was reduced, but not killed. Drawdown did not impact turtles and frogs. There was less ice fishing than usual so fish population wasn’t affected either. The water clarity is exceptional at this point in the season.
It’s too early to tell if the drawdown goal of improving fish habitat has been met. Max Wolter / DNR Fisheries will conduct a survey in the Fall.
There was general consensus among meeting attendees that the drawdown should be done again; the same approval process would be required. The timing and depth of the drawdown would be dependent on DNR’s findings. Any drawdown would be every other year alternating with the DNR stocking fish.
Weed Watcher Program – Jeff Hanson
Nelson Lake hasn’t had a problem with invasive species. The Association assists by staffing inspectors at the launches to check boats on weekends and holidays. If there were an invasion, the Association has a monitoring system in place to catch the problem before it becomes serious. We have divided Nelson L. into 31 sections and each section uses a volunteer to check for curly leaf pondweed and Eurasian milfoil in June and August, respectively. We have most of the sections covered, but have 6 volunteers still needed to complete the work. Interested? Training and a manual are given to each new volunteer. Please call any Nelson L Board member if you have interest in this volunteer position.
CPR/AED Information – Jim Onerheim
We have 3 AED’s on the lake at Nelson Lake Landing, Four Seasons Resort and Revelle’s Resort. They are identical to the units used by the Sawyer County ambulance service. The AED self-checks daily to make sure it is operational.
Emergency responders for Nelson Lake come from Hayward. There is no formal back up crew to the “first out” crew so there can be delays. People at the scene of the emergency can provide critical assistance. Having CPR certification helps, but anyone can call 911 and collect information (name, birthdate, doctor’s name) to assist the EMTs.
Jim demonstrated how to use the AED. Check for a pulse. If the person is nonresponsive, put defribulator pads in place. Clothing and hair must be removed and the chest dry for the pads to adhere. Stand clear! NO ONE can be touching the person when the shock is delivered. The machine will not allow a shock to be delivered if there’ is a heart rhythm.
Jim also demonstrated with a dummy how to do chest compressions.
Annual Business Meeting
Minutes. 2019 Annual Meeting minutes were read and approved.
Proxy Vote. 186 ballots were distributed in lieu of a face-to-face Annual Meeting. All proxy ballots voted for Cara Goldman, Casey Stangl. John Welter, Dale McPherson to be elected. Election results approved.
Treasurer’s Report. Current checking account balance is $20,326.68. Money Market balance is $27, 837.22. The Association has 234 members. $7,020 in dues were collected, plus $2,035 in additional donations.
Beginning balance as of March 31, 2021 was $39,740.68. Revenue was $24,759.25. Expenses were $22,505.68 (included purchase of picnic tables for Dam Park). Ending balance was $41,994.25.
Treasurer’s report accepted.
Cara Goldman is stepping down as Treasurer at the end of 2021. Nominations are welcome. No financial background necessary, but knowing how to run an Excel spreadsheet is helpful.
Nominations and Elections. Candidates for re-election are Rick Lindner, Jeff Hanson, Mark Schaenzer, Mike Hallam. Motion made and seconded to elect all of them. The elections were approved at the meeting.
Annual Picnic. The picnic will be held as planned on August 14, 2021 at Dam Park. Food will be catered rather than potluck.
Scholarship Award. A scholarship was awarded by the Association to Soile Doyle who is attending UW.
New Business:
As a safety matter, it was suggested the location and ownership of utility boxes should be identified by the Township.
FYI. The homeowners on Ewig Lane, a private road, are meeting to discuss the problem with ATV’s and delivery trucks using the lane as a through road.
There was discussion of the creation of a swimming beach at the north end of the lake. Concerns were raised that creating a beach would change the wilderness character of the area and that trash would become an issue. Note: Cards are being handed out at the launches letting boaters know that littering is illegal and violators will be fined. Can the Association find a different location that is only accessible by boat (e.g. – Big Island shoreline)?
Door Prizes. Two $25 gift certificates redeemable at any resort on the lake were won by Jim Hammar and Matt Dietrich.
2022 Annual Meeting.
The next annual meeting will be held on Saturday, June 11, 2022.
Respectfully submitted, Steve Bilitz, Secretary (assisted by Paula Bilitz)