INNISFAIL – The community is being called for another round of input into the new Dodd’s Lake Area Community Recreation Plan.
And design concepts recently received by the town from project consultant Stantec show current popular amenities and activities could largely remain the same, although dramatically improved and visually more appealing.
However, there are at least two activities that could be new, or at least publicly recognized by the town – swimming and fishing, the latter at least for Prussian carp, a problematic species in Dodd’s Lake that garnered province-wide attention last fall.
Last summer the town hosted a comprehensive online public engagement strategy from July 24 to Aug. 31 that included live presentations from leading Stantec officials. When it ended Aug. 31, Stantec began work on preliminary design concepts. The town has recently received some for the lake’s main south area and shore, as well as the north area near the Hazelwood Estates subdivision, and the east end of the lake.
Beginning Jan. 1 and ending Jan. 25, the public will be asked to provide input on Stantec’s concept designs. While the public engagement will take place online, there will not be live presentations or discussions with members of the public.
Once the new public engagement process is completed, Stantec will finalize a report document that includes the new concepts, as well as policies and other materials, for the physical building out of the new designs.
Meghan Jenkins, the town’s director of community services, said the final report will be made available to the public prior to council’s final approval, hopefully by the second half of February.
Jenkins said the final report could come back with modifications based on new public input.
“Yes, if somebody says, ‘we don’t like that trail,” she said.
She said the amenities that received the highest public response from the first public engagement were “smaller things” like more picnic tables and washrooms and improved parking.
“Not huge grandiose ideas. That is what Stantec took away, and has put forward,” said Jenkins. “They would like to see it improved or spruced up but in general people were quite satisfied with what we currently have in terms of the amenities there.”
But as far as activities go for the future of Dodd’s Lake, there could be a beach added for swimming, and at the very least acknowledgement there is fishing opportunities, whether opponents like it or not.
Jenkins said for now swimming is still “potentially” on the table as an activity that could be allowed for Dodd’s Lake, but it will only come once everyone is on board to have a communication plan put in place, with the provincial government’s support, to ensure safe water quality and advise the public of the risks.
“If we are going to move to promoting people going in the water, same as the boats, that will be part of council’s decision in approving this that they are comfortable because there will be some testing and time that will involve staff in terms of monitoring that and making sure we’re letting people know if they shouldn’t be swimming,” said Jenkins, adding the new concept includes a grass-area type of beach separated from where boats go in and out of the lake. “(It’s) where a person could wade or walk in the water or swim if you wanted to.
“If we are providing an access point that looks as though that is what you are supposed to do there then yes, we will have to be monitoring that water quality or having signs up letting people know if there are risks,” she said, adding the town would have to work with the provincial health ministry to ensure all safe water quality guidelines are in place before opening up the lake for swimming. “That is something the town needs to be aware of, that if we are going to open it (Dodd's Lake) up for more water usage then we will have to have a protocol of how are monitoring that, how we are communicating that with the public."
As for fishing, the town finds itself in a position where leisure angling, once thought never to be viable at Dodd’s Lake, would probably be more of a benefit rather than problematic. The Prussian carp is an invasive species that can survive in almost any type of water conditions. They can also navigate through most types of storm ponds and streams. The province is convinced there is no point in trying to control Prussian carp and can only strongly advise anyone who catches any to kill them immediately.
“We don’t prohibit fishing. We know the fish are there. People have been fishing and can. They are encouraged not to put those fish back into the water,” said Jenkins, adding signage about not putting any Prussian carp back into the lake will be an important educational component for the public. “As we know from the province there is not a lot of hope we could get rid of them. We will work with what we have and try to educate people about them.”
Beginning Jan. 1 citizens can access the new Dodd’s Lake public engagement plan at this website: https://townofinnisfail.mysocialpinpoint.com/dodds-lake-recreation-plan
