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Paradox Lake Association $$PLAIN_TEXT_PREVIEW$$
Greetings from Paradox Lake!
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Fall is now in full swing, the foliage has popped, and stunning scenes appear everywhere you look. Most boats have been put away, leaves float on the water, and days are definitely getting shorter and cooler. We had a couple of frosty nights in September, before a delightful warm spell, followed by lots of rain. We may be slightly past peak, but it's still beautiful here! On September 24 we had our second annual business meeting for the year, on Zoom of course. Thank you to all of the members who were able to join us and our apologies to anyone who tried to join us but ran into technical difficulties. This letter will briefly recap the substance of the meeting. The Board went through a strategic planning process in the spring to identify our most pressing objectives for 2020-21. This process was presented at our spring business meeting, and guided our activities this summer. Our primary objectives then and now are to: Optimize mitigation efforts used to address aquatic invasives Increase awareness and engagement of our lake community and visitors Identify funding opportunities to support our purpose Identify funding to ensure the long-term sustainability of preserving and protecting our lake.
To these ends, we have had some significant gains.
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Aquatic invasives, mostly Eurasian Milfoil and some Curly Pondweed, were found in both the upper and lower lakes, as well as in the inlet, Narrows, and outlet. With the help of many volunteers, some veterans and many new ones, as well as Aqualogic, most of these weeds have been removed. The inlet bay (eastern end of the lake) still has numerous plants, and will benefit from one more day of Aqualogic's efforts this month. Many thanks to all the volunteers for their tremendous help, and in particular, Gretchen Sunderland and Liz Reid for their tireless efforts in training new volunteers and organizing sweeps. In an effort to optimize our spending on invasives prevention this year, the Board reviewed prior year’s launch usage and developed a reduced schedule that optimized coverage at the launch. The reduced hours were paid for in full by the Adirondack Watershed Institute and greatly reduced the cost to the lake association. Over the course of the year the boat launch steward inspected 1051 watercraft, finding only 4 non-invasive organisms. The PLA and the Schroon Lake Association fund the Severance Boat Wash with support from the Town of Schroon. The station inspected 147 watercraft, and found 2 non-invasive organisms.
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Dee Dee Foran, our Recording Secretary along with a group of enthusiastic volunteers who formed the Fundraising Committee, came up with a bunch of fabulous new fundraising ideas. Unfortunately they had to be tabled, along with the very popular annual Golf Outing, due to COVID considerations. At the last minute, they put together an on-line raffle which raised over $4000 in net profits for the Association. Well done! Our remaining fundraiser for the year will be the sale of 2021 PLA calendars and, new this year, PLA note cards. To submit photos for the calendar and note cards, go to paradox-lake.com/2021-calendar-photos.
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Matt Massiano, our Treasurer, presented our 2020 Financials. Despite our concerns that 2020 would be a difficult year financially, it is on track to become a successful one. Our bank balance as of Sept 24 was 53,585, $6,300 less than the balance this time last year, but better than expected for this year. Income exceeded budget by over $11,000, thanks to unusually generous member contributions and the unexpected raffle. We did spend an additional $5000 on Milfoil harvesting than we had budgeted, but this was offset by a grant from NYS
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We are very happy to announce that we now have 179 paid members, a 40% increase over last year! We continue to appreciate our neighbors who join us, and who show up time and time again to help keep our lake clean and healthy. Our Vice President Dan Gorke, assisted by member Diane Clarke, sent emails and letters to many of our neighbors encouraging them to join and the results speak for themselves. It's never too late to join… just go to paradox-lake.com.
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Micki Kuttler (Upper Lake Director) and Doug Kaufman (Lower Lake Director) renewed their terms after an uncontested election.
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The board recognized member, Joe Richardson, who has gratuitously offered to work with the Board on its initiative to identify sources of longer-term funding. Thank you, Joe.
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Enjoy Your Fall, The Paradox Lake Association Board
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