| Hidden Lake Estates P r o p e r t y O w n e r s A s s o c i a t i o n Hawley, Pennsylvania |
Ripples on the Lake
| Summer 2008 Mark your calendars, Saturday July 26th is the annual meeting at the Lakeville firehouse on Rt. 509. All community members are encouraged to attend. This is the perfect chance to get involved with the community affairs and meet your neighbors. Once again there will be a picnic, at the lake, following the meeting. Water testing equipment has been purchased and a regular testing program is being set up to test the quality of the lake water. These records will help us keep track of the lake and notify us if anything is going wrong. The board also purchased 2000 small bluegills to help develop a strong bass population. This was done with the recommendation of the “experts” at PA Fish and Game and Wilkes University. We are asking the cooperation of all members who fish the lake. We would like to set up a slot limit (size window) for the bass. Between June 14th and October 31st, please keep (max.6) the bass you catch between 12” (state limit) and 16”. This will allow the larger bass to grow and reduce the number of fish feeding. We also recommend that you keep the large bluegills since they compete with the bass for food. I would appreciate it if everyone would notify me of their catch, so I could keep some records and determine if this program is working. Any questions or ideas feel free to call me 226-9474. As I have been out on the lake already, I noticed that there are several boats around the lake without tags. Just to make it as clear as possible ALL BOATS that use the lake MUST have TWO tags attached to them. One is the stick on tag that changes every year. This is issued after dues are paid. The other tag is a permanent metal tag that is purchased for a one time $10.00 fee. These tags are available from Bob Essex (226-6240). Again, if there are any questions please call one of the board members. A question came up about outboard gas motors on the lake. The board interprets the rules as no gas motors allowed on the lake. That means they are prohibited whether they are in the water or just on the boat. Any boat with a gas motor on board is not allowed on the lake. All of these precautions and regulations are in place to protect the lake. This is the communities asset and we ALL should contribute to maintaining it. One last item about the lake; remember there is no parking on the lake side of the dam. If you are using the picnic area you may unload on the gravel area by the dock than park your car in the parking lot by the mail building. Please do not drive cars on the grass area by the picnic benches. While attending a meeting of sister communities concerning roads, it was brought up that proper drainage along the roads and ditches is necessary to keep road heaves and cracking to a minimum. Since road maintenance is a major budget item, the cleaning of ditches and driveway drainage pipes by each homeowner is necessary. All homeowners are responsible for cleaning the driveway pipes and ditches on their property. If you use a landscaping company to clean your property, make sure to tell them not to rake or blow leaves or clippings into the drainage ditches. Please make it a point to attend the annual meeting. This is the best way to express your opinion and listen to the opinions of others as to how the community should progress. Brian J. McCarthy Notes from board attendance at Wallenpaupack Communities Association meetings Back in April, HLE joined the Wallenpaupack Communities Association at a cost of $25. This organization meets about 1 time per month and has speakers on subjects such as Maintenance of Roads, Controlling Deer & Geese Populations, Community Insurance, UPCA/Act 180 Representation & Round Table Discussions. Brian has covered some of the take-away information on the first meeting we attended on roads. Although we are committed on the construction method, we were told that water and frost are two of the main reasons for road failure. Maintenance of ditches by owners and road closings are some of the proactive methods we have to protect our roads. The second meeting we attended covered the control of Deer & Geese. According to Gino D’ Angelo of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, one of the ways to get rid of geese is a program of harassment. The suggestion a couple of years back by John Loeser that dog cut outs by the lake might help in the harassment has had some success. We tested it in the back yard of the Ipolito’s who have lake front property. They noted a distinct reduction in Geese droppings on their property. Now, if we can get Cindy to walk her dogs past the common area once and a while, even though they are the wrong color, it might aid in the geese harassment. Max McCarthy is the correct color & breed, but like many of us, due to old age, the inclination is not there. If you look at the woods in our area, you will note the total lack of undergrowth need to sustain smaller animals. The over abundance of deer in our development has caused this problem. This deer problem has been enhanced due to feeding of deer by our members. The feeding of deer artificially concentrates them in one location for extended periods of time. CWD (Chronic Wasting Disease) is most likely transmitted from deer to deer by direct contact between animals, or indirectly through contact with waste food, urine, and feces that build up at feeding sites, although the exact transmittal mechanism is currently unknown. The CWD incubation period can be three years or longer, and an outbreak among white-tailed deer at feeding sites could spread the disease before clinically-ill individuals are observed. Corn toxicity is a general term related to two diseases which can affect white-tailed deer. These diseases are acidosis (grain overload and dehydration) and enterotoxemia (overeating disease). The board can supply many articles on this subject supplied by Gino D’ Angelo (along with a dictionary) for those who choose to refute the deer problem or diseases. It was also mentioned that some communities bring in “Hired Guns” to put it bluntly for “Population Management”. I don’t think anybody wants to attract individuals in pick up trucks with the shotguns in racks across their back windows because HLE has a passel of deer and they are easy to spot or entice right to the truck bed. Just throw out some cracked corn, they are accustomed to it. Although the USDA states in various terms that the feeding of deer is an irresponsible act against the deer, neighbors and community, it is currently not with-in the board's realm to enforce what others are doing or thinking in this respect. We can only hope that our members act responsibly so that corrective measures are not needed. WCA meeting notes and comments by Ed Moen |
By Brian J. McCarthy
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