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Big Pond Watchdogs
By Ginger Costen
Webster Times
Webster Lake Association
celebrates one-year anniversary
Webster- For generations children
have enjoyed summer and playing in Webster Lake.
On Saturday, August 2, the
members of the Webster Lake Association (WLA) continued that
tradition as three generations of Webster families gathered to
celebrate the first birthday of the nonprofit organization.
From a crowd-pleasing
demonstration by the 49 year-old Nipmuc Ski Club to the last boat
ride of the afternoon, more than 130 members and their families
enjoyed a barbeque dinner along with games and music. The WLA
began on the 4th of July weekend 2002 when a small group of lake
residents gathered together to discuss ongoing problems with the
town’s boat docking permit process. Although the Board of
Selectmen (BOS) has temporarily put the permit process on hold,
the organization has moved ahead with other lake concerns.
“I started this organization
because a lake the size of ours should have an association as
there is strength in numbers,” said founding member and WLA
Secretary Jane Hill. “I knew that if we came together as a group
we’d strengthen the community and be able to address many of the
same environmental issues that other lake associations do –
before it was too late for
Webster Lake.”
Founding member and WLA President
Dick Cazeault said the group felt the lake was sometimes getting
the short end of the stick in terms of setting priorities.
“Many of us wanted to initiate a
change that would make the dock fees come back to benefit the
lake,” he said. “So when one of our Selectmen told us that if we
didn’t like it, we could form our own tea-party, we did.”
The WLA was long over due,
according to Selectman Ray Regis.
“The nonprofit organization will
not only benefit the lake; it’s also a group of hard-working and
dedicated community members that are helping all of us ensure the
lake remains one of the best natural resources in the
Commonwealth.”
Selectman Chairman Robert Miller
said it should be the collective responsibility of the board to
reach out to the members of the WLA.
“We should work hand-in-hand
drawing from their collective expertise strengthening the
conservation and planning Committees thereby improving the lake
while maximizing it’s potential,” he said. “And not just because
we all live on the lake, but because we owe it to every person who
has ever had fun on the lake to preserve this beauty for many more
generations.”
Cazeault said he is surprised by
WLA’s rise in popularity.
“More and more we gain support
from local and state officials,” he said. “Yet I think our
greatest accomplishment has been the combined camaraderie that
transcends all political lines.”
These days, WLA is addressing
water safety, long term development, management and critical
environmental concerns.
“I knew we’d have support, but
I’m amazed at the level we have received - not only from people
around the lake…” said Hill. “Next year we are going to have to
think beyond the edges of our shores to make the dream of a
healthy and productive lake a reality. It’s going to cost even
more money to move forward with the results of the survey.”
According to Cazeault, the
GeoSyntec weed survey has been completed and a report will be
posted in September on the WLA website at
www.websterlakeassociation.com
“The survey is just the first
step,” he said. “This next year we need to cultivate working
relationships within our community and the Commonwealth to help
secure grant and project funding which will help us to act upon
the survey results.”
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