1. An enjoyable 4th of July holiday was enjoyed by all, including the Venetian Night, parade, WLWSST Ski show, fireworks, and the complete absence of dredge pipelines and equipment on the lake.

2. Yet another reminder that the MPOA will be conducting a temporary drawdown of the lake, slated to roughly begin at the beginning of October 2019, to facilitate needed maintenance of the Wonder Lake Dam spillway. Any in-lake equipment that lake front landowners need to have moved from the lake for the winter should be completed by the beginning of October.

3. The drawdown will also provide an opportunity for lakefront landowners to conduct clean-up activities along their frontage, or possibly implement shoreline stabilization practices. A number of lakefront landowners have already begun the process of checking with the regulatory agencies to determine if their proposed activity will require any permits. Simple clean-up of exposed shoreline areas will not require any permits, but any digging, importing / placing of materials will likely need regulatory permit approval or clearances.

4. It’s important to remember that ANY new shoreline stabilization project, or major repair of an existing shoreline practice, will likely require regulatory permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and McHenry County or Village of Wonder Lake, as discussed here: https://wlmpoa.org/shoreline-streambank-stabilization-permits

5. The Nippersink Watershed Association is closing in on its fund-raising goal of $7,000, which when achieved will enable the NWA to receive an additional $21,000 in grant funding from the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation (ICECF) for the on-going Merchant Creek restoration project. Only $1,164 in additional donations need to be received to meet the $7,000 goal. Donation checks can be mailed or dropped off at the MPOA office, and should reference “ICECF Grant” on the memo portion of the check. Donations can also be made through PayPal (no account needed) on the NWA website, using this link. http://nippersink.org/CSgrant.htm

6. The regularly scheduled “3rd Saturday” Nippersink Watershed Association Merchant Creek workday will be on Saturday, July 20th, 2019 to continue to clear invasive brush and weeds from a portion of the Merchant Creek stream corridor. This volunteer work is being done in advance of an upcoming IEPA Section 319 funded stream stabilization project to help minimize the significant amounts of sediment that this parcel has delivered to Wonder Lake over the past decades, due to a long-term lack of proper management by the previous landowner. Please note the meeting location being used for this workday. Volunteer’s will meet at 8 am at the north end (dead end) of Park Drive, just north of Wooded Shores Drive. Park Drive is the second side street off Wooded Shores Drive coming west from East Wonder Lake Road. As always, volunteers are welcome, as volunteer time counts towards an ICECF grant also obtained by the NWA. There are tasks available for all levels of effort.

7. July is recognized as Lakes Appreciation Month by the North American Lake Management Society (over). A number of lake-friendly governor’s across the US have also signed declarations recognizing this, and it is hoped that by next year, Illinois will also have a similar declaration in place.