Welcome in the Summer

Fairmont Lakes Foundation, Inc. would like to welcome you to summer…finally.

Budd Lake was the recipient of the first scheduled lake clean-up of 2022. There were approximately 40 volunteers that walked shorelines of Hall Lake and Budd Lake, along with volunteers that brought their boats, kayaks, and pontoons to assist in removing trash ranging from discarded plastic bottles and metal cans to automotive tires. Any time a scheduled clean-up garners trash from our lakes it has to be deemed a success. Thank you to all of the volunteers.

The lake clean-up serves a dual purpose for delivering a wake-up call for our stewardship responsibilities for our lakes. Not only does it enlighten us to the abusive nature of some for disposing trash in the lakes, but it signals (or should signal) an awareness that littering, including grass clippings thrown into the street by careless mowing may eventually end up in our lakes. Homeowners sometimes cannot avoid shooting the clippings into the street. However, they are easily cleaned up after mowing before thinking the job of mowing is done. Remember, it is a violation to leave the clippings in the street. A person can be cited for the violation.

Let’s turn our attention to a major project bringing positive impact to our Chain of Lakes…the Habitat Restoration & Nitrate Bioreactor project. The project is currently in the final stages of construction. All earthwork has been completed. The habitat pond has been completed and is ready to serve as spawning habitat. Dutch Creek bank stabilization work has been completed. Last fall dormant seeding was completed, and the site is beginning to green up. Trees were planted last week. New plugs and remaining seeding work will be completed in the next couple of weeks. The bioreactor that was constructed last fall is currently operational and is being monitored collaboratively by the City Staff and the University of Minnesota.

We’d like to give a shout out to Tyler Cowing for providing the update on the Habitat Restoration & Bioreactor project on Dutch Creek. If you’d like to get a visual of the project, head to the west side of Fairmont and take a drive on County 39. You can’t miss the activity on the east side of 39.

Not to be confused with the Dutch Creek project, there is a private project directly to the west side of County 39 from the Dutch Creek project. This pond was the idea of Gary Haeckel and was a collaboration with the City to remove soil from the site to use in filling in the lime pits by the tree dump. When it fills with water it will be a private pond. If you get a chance, ask Gary about this unique accomplishment.

We have no update on County Ditch 28, other than the project is with engineers working out the improvement specs for another site that drains the watershed into our reservoir.

With all of that, let us wish you a safe and responsible use of our lakes this summer.

Michael J. Katzenmeyer
Fairmont Lakes Foundation, Inc. member