Board members present: Jeff Burke, George Kupfer, Tom Olson, Bill Schroeder, Paul Specht and Jill Wilm. Other VVLA members present: Jorja Burke and Diane Schroeder.

Appointment of Secretary: Jim Sprester has resigned from his position as secretary. In accordance with the by-laws, the Board has appointed Jorja Burke to serve as secretary for the remainder of Jim’s term. The VVLA thanks Jim for his dedicated service to the organization!

New Webmaster: Tom’s son, Andy, has had the VVLA website up and running for sometime now and is ready to pass on those responsibilities. Ronie Jacobsen has agreed to fill the position of “Webmaster”. Discussion ensued re education – classes at a tech school, other education, costs involved. The Board unanimously approved reimbursement for any reasonable costs for education. Jeff will contact Ronie, asking for her ideas. The VVLA thanks Ronie for agreeing to take on this task!

Lake Level Issues: Paul cites “empty kettle” on his property. He would like to adopt a wait and see position for the next six months. George reports the level is the lowest he’s seen in 40 years Jeff relayed information re the responsibility for the Marenisco Dam (which is not under DNR jurisdiction) being transferred to the Town of Marenisco. Tom doesn’t think the dam was dynamited but rather, disassembled. Tom says we’re speculating on puzzle pieces George suggests sending letters to several government officials who may be interested in some residents’ involvement in removing beaver dams (as state and county departments deny involvement) – if a letter goes out, the offices sent to must respond. George has a draft and will refine it. Jill asked with whom John McManus and Bob Barofsky, the Pres. and VP of PI Lake, have spoken. She suggests when sending out letters, reference be made to the recent VVLA Management Plan and future planning. Board members agree this is an important issue and would like to find a solution, as the impact is so much greater on VVL than on PI Lake because of the great difference in depths between the two lakes. Also, in shallow lakes such as VVL, our H2O level is impacted more than in deeper lakes. Co-operation between PI Lake and Averill Lake residents will be solicited. Paul moved to send out George’s letter of concern re removal of beaver dams and affect on lake levels to state and county officials and to George’s contact list of individuals who may be interested. Tom seconded the motion. Motion carried.

Lake Vegetation Issue: At the 2006 annual July meeting member Jim Sprester brought up the issue of lake weed control. He felt that the VVLA board should be charged with the responsibility of dealing with this issue. The Board discussed this item and determined that either the physical removal of vegetation, by whatever method, or a program of poisoning vegetation was simply beyond the physical and financial resources available to the Board. Reluctantly, the Board suggests that property owners impacted by weeds in front of their properties need to deal with this problem individually. Additionally, other points were mentioned: There are ways and means open to pursue this – some require a permit from the DNR. Also, it is required that we have an aquatic plant management plan (from an expert) in order to ask DNR’s permission to implement a plan or for their help. The lake had been treated in 1967 and following that procedure, there was a massive vegetative die-off. Based on the recent lake management plan, it was suggested that residents wishing to apply mechanical means for vegetation removal will need to band together to work on this. Info will be included in newsletter.

Next Steps Lake Management Plan: Review and note any questions. Tom suggested letting membership know what some of the options that were listed. Jill notes that residents need to become involved in projects, i.e., monitoring our boat landing. George, who has expertise in this area, has already developed a strategy, which includes asking members to review suggestions from Blue Water. Then, consider suggestions with other factors including hints for shorelines, involvement of residents, reviewing of lake water quality. A committee of George, Jill and Bill will begin.

Septic: Item fits in with water quality issues. Jeff has a list of owners who are on the County Septic Maintenance System. He explained that getting on the system may take some work on the owner’s part and may include a soil boring. Vilas County has the highest septic maintenance compliance rate in Wisconsin. The Board decided to list the property owners who are on the maintenance system and provide information on how to get on the system if an owner’s property is not included in the County’s Septic Maintenance System.

Bass Bag Limit Agreement: PILA requested VVLA join them in requesting that the DNR change the bass bag limit on the Presque Isle chain. The change would decrease the daily bag limit and increase the minimum size.

Hemlock: Tour set up for Monday with reps from BCPL and other interested factions. Good News: Money has been set asides for acquisitions such as this; Bad News: Limit on funds is $2,000,000 & hemlock land worth is more than $2,000,000.

Meeting adjourned at 5:30pm with a motion by Paul and 2nd by Bill.

Respectfully submitted,
Jorja Burke, Acting Secretary