Indian Lake Watershed Association Update 12/11/2017
Volunteer Michael Sloan IV 
to be recognized Tuesday, December 12th

We are excited to announce that Michael Sloan IV will be recognized at the Worcester City Council meeting on Tuesday, December 12th, 2017 at 7pm.
 
Michael is a 2017 graduate of Worcester Technical High School and a lifelong Indian Lake resident. He has been volunteering his time for the Indian Lake Watershed Association for over 12 years!
 
A quiet but extremely hard working young man, Michael has worked at his family's business, W.J Hoey Tire Co., for many years. He is also working as an electrician apprentice preparing for his Electrical Journeyman exam. 
 
Michael has given endlessly of his time and energy to the ILWA including regularly helping at our bi-annual cleanups, mowing Morgan Park regularly for the past 4 years and ensuring the association's equipment is in good working order before cleanup events. Michael created a high power leaf vacuum which attaches to a dump truck allowing volunteers to pick up the leaves at Morgan Park in a fraction of the time than it took in years past.
 
Never seeking the spotlight, only focused on getting the work done, he truly sets the standard for hard work, dedication and community service.
 
Michael also regularly donates his time to Kiwanis Club of Worcester which serves thousands of children in our area.
 
Congratulations Mikey!
 
Old Sails Gain New Life with help of Sea Bags
 
Many sails that were left in the building at Shore Park were in danger of being thrown away when an attempt to find them a good home led us to Regatta Point Sailing. It was there that we learned about Sea Bags in Portland, Maine which gives new life to sails that are no longer able to serve their original purpose.
 
In preparation for the building at Shore Park to come down, volunteers sorted through all the old sails and a representative from Sea Bags came to pick them up.
 
The sails were exchanged for beautiful bags to be auctioned as a fundraiser to benefit the beautiful lake that the Indian Lake Sailing Club founder Pat Pavini loved so much. Each bag is stamped with the nautical coordinates of Indian Lake. Watch for more information on this in the spring.

Please consider supporting this wonderful company!
Fall Cleanup Brings Volunteers on a Beautiful November Day
 
Thank you to everyone who came out for our fall cleanup! While we did not have enough of a turnout to tackle all of the locations we hoped, our volunteers worked tirelessly and did a fabulous job at Morgan Park and Clason Beach!
Monthly Neighborhood Watch
 
The Indian Lake Neighborhood Watch meets the third Tuesday of each month at 6:00pm at the training room at Harr Toyota, 100 Gold Star Boulevard. At every meeting we receive an update on the neighborhood crime statistics from the previous month from Worcester
Police Officer Lisa Carlson. Officer Carlson also shares other updates with the group including trends in crime around the city as well as important tips regarding general safety, home security and how to identify illegal drugs and drug use behaviors.
 
This meeting is also about quality of life issues in the neighborhood such as missing street signs, graffiti, illegal dumpting, pot holes, abandoned vehicles, abandoned houses, etc. The meeting is typically attended by one of the City of Worcester Code Enforcement employees who is also available to answer questions about city ordinances.
 
If you are unable to attend these meetings but would like to share information with the group or ask a question you can email dmohieldin@mhq.com  or Officer Carlson directly at carlsonl@worcesterma.gov .
 
The next neighborhood meeting is Tuesday, December 19th at 6pm.

Indian Lake Winter Drawdown Update
 
The drawdown has inched its way down this year as only one gate is open. Once the level is down, the City of Worcester Department of Parks and Public Works will be looking at what repairs need to be made to the other gate.
 
The lake will be lowered to 5 feet vertical this year. It is currently at 3 1/2 feet so expect the lake level to continue to drop. As a reminder, while this is a great opportunity to clean up along the shoreline and repair docks, this is a tool that we are grateful to have to help manage nonnative, invasive vegetation. While it doesn't address all nonnative weed growth, it has proved very successful in managing Eurasian milfoil which at one time made the lake virtually unusable. While we know this invasive species remains in the lake, the growth has been tremendously reduced, especially in the last few years.
 
Since there are performance standards that must be met, we have no way of controlling whether ice will still be on the lake at refill time. Ideally docks should be removed or secured in some fashion to prevent damage.

Website: www.ilwa.org

Indian Lake Watershed Association, Inc.
PO Box 60244, Worcester, MA 01606

  
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