Truesdale Lake

November 15, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on 2022-23 Drawdown Coming Soon!

2022-23 Drawdown Coming Soon!

Photo: exposed tree stumps left behind are revealed during the 2019 drawdown. The stumps date from 1929 when the stream was dammed and the lake was formed. These trees were cut down but the stumps were not removed and they remain in the south end of Lake Truesdale nearly 100 years later.

The TLPOA lake committee has set the lake drawdown to start the week of November 28. We will let you know any updates.

Depending on the amount of rain we might encounter, the water level should drop quickly over the following 2 weeks. This will allow the exposed mud on the lake bed to compact and help minimize next years weed growth in the shallow parts of the lake. This also helps reduce our use of herbicides to combat the invasive weeds.

The drawdown level will fluctuate during the winter based on weather and water flow, but the goal is to maintain a level up to 3 feel lower than the dam spillway through February.

For those with waterfront homes – this is a great time to take advantage of the lower water level to make any repairs, clean up your shore line and remove any fallen trees from the water. Any mechanical activity in the lake or along the shore will require a wetland permit. Contact the town for necessary information specific to your property and project.

If you have not seen a drawdown or want to refresh your memory, check this kayak-level view of the drawdown and the secrets it exposed in 2019. (Photos by Rob Cummings, Sept 2019)

Signs have been placed on either side of the dam indicating where fishing will not be permitted during the drawdown.

There is no fishing permitted from the bridge and between the signs posted on Indian Lane.

Website note: There is absolutely NO FISHING allowed in the stream from the north side of the dam and bridge. It is private property. Signs have been placed. Numerous cleanups have been done in the past six months of fishing line and hooks in that stream and the bushes and trees that surround it. Several water birds have been trapped by the crisscrossing discarded fishing line. At least one Great Blue Heron was killed by discarded fishing line in this area. We do not want a repeat — police will be called on trespassers.

October 27, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Lake Drawdown Plan 2022-2023

Lake Drawdown Plan 2022-2023

We plan to do a winter lake drawdown on Truesdale Lake starting late November 2022 lasting until around February-March 2023.

The aim is to duplicate the successful drawdowns of 2019-20 and 2020-21. We skipped last year on the advice of our lake management company, Pond & Lake Connection. They advise drawdowns every other year after the initial 2 years back to back.

Actual dates and drawdown success will depend on how quickly the siphons remove the top 3′ of water from the lake, how much rain we get that re-fills the lake, when the ice-over happens that can potentially stop the siphons from functioning, and any loss of suction that interrupts the siphons from functioning.

There are a lot of variables at play and we cannot predict exactly how the drawdown will proceed, but it will be actively managed during the season.

For more information on drawdowns we have done in the past, visit our Drawdown Project page here: https://truesdalelake.com/projects/lake-drawdown/

October 25, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on 2022 Halloween Parade

2022 Halloween Parade

Halloween Parade
Saturday, October 29th – 11 AM

Volunteers ARE NEEDED for this event!
We need volunteers to help set up & clean up the beach party! If you are available and willing please reach out to Bree Rasamny at (954) 296-1142 ASAP. It is much appreciated! See you all there and HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

October 11, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Fall 2022 TEA Membership Meeting: Mon, Nov 14

Fall 2022 TEA Membership Meeting: Mon, Nov 14

Fall 2022 Membership Meeting November 14th @ Horse & Hound

The TEA Annual Spring Membership Meeting is planned for Monday, November 14, 2022 at the Horse & Hound at 94 Spring Street. We also plan to have a laptop/camera at the meeting broadcasting over Zoom for TEA members interested in watching remotely.

Meeting will begin at 7:00 p.m. Note: This meeting is for TEA Members only.

Email tea@truesdalelake.com to RSVP for in-person. If you want the Zoom Link please ask for it when you RSVP.

If you are new to the TEA or you want to update us on your information, please fill out the TEA Resident Questionnaire. Thanks!

Agenda
➡ President and other Officer reports
➡ Treasurer:

YTD FY2022-2023 Budget vs. Actual review

➡ Beach Report / Lake Committee update

➡ Projects Update
➡ Upcoming meeting schedule for coming year.

The TEA Officer roles are two year terms. At the end of 2022 the terms end and we need to get them filled for the 2023-2024 term.

WE NEED SOME NEW BOARD MEMBERS! a lot of the same people are taking on the board and officer roles, some for many years. Fresh eyes and fresh energy is needed and valued. If you are new to the community and want to help, there are lots of ways to pitch in.

Current TEA Officers for 2021-22 with OPEN SPOTS NOTED:

President (Rob Cummings) – organizes & runs meetings, in charge of recruiting next president and officers. Can sign checks. NEW PRESIDENT for 2023-24: TBD

Vice President (Howard Citron) – runs meetings when President can’t attend. Fills in other roles as needed. Can sign checks. NEW VICE-PRESIDENT FOR 2023-24: TBD

Treasurer (Mike Vellensky) – deposits checks, writes checks, tracks and reports on income/expense and bank balances. Tax filing 990. NEW TREASURER for 2023-24: Ruth Vellensky

Recording Secretary (Wendy Daniels) – Takes meeting minutes, sends drafts to board and membership attendees post-meeting. NEW RECORDING SECRETARY for 2023-24: TBD

Corresponding Secretary (Michael Jackson) – Receives and replies to association correspondence. NEW CORRESPONDING SECRETARY for 2023-24: Rob Cummings

Sergeant-at-Arms (Kay Jex) – guards the door (or virtual door). NEW SERGEANT-AT-ARMS for 2023-24: TBD

Formal roles for Officers are in the TEA Bylaws here:

TEA Bylaws

At-large Board members (7-9 members needed) attend 4 standing meetings per year. Current board members are: Lisa Capobianco (Beach Chairperson), Glenn Capobianco, Harron Appleman, Melissa Scarlatto, Tom Houlihan, Ira Sanchick, Kathleen Ward Gallagher, Carol Gamez, Debbie Fink.

We are welcoming two new board members starting immediately: Kate Grieve and Sarah Polizzotto who are also taking over the beach chairperson role from Lisa Capobianco. Thank you Kate and Sarah!

Standing Association Meetings are on the following UPDATED schedule:
-TEA Membership Meetings (entire membership invited 2x/year):
—SECOND Monday of April (April 10, 2023, Spring Membership Meeting)
—SECOND Monday of November (Nov 14, 2022, Fall Membership Meeting, the one coming up)
-TEA Board Meetings (board members only):
—SECOND Monday of March (March 13, 2023)
—SECOND Monday of October (Oct 10, 2022)
Special Meetings can be called for association business.

Critical positions that don’t have to be board members:

Beach Chairperson – Hire and train lifeguards, coordinate beach clean-up, monitor beach conditions, keep an eye on beach things like electricity and trash service. Lots more! A lot of overlap with the Social Chairperson.

Social Chairperson – Plan and get volunteers for any social events – primarily the Summer Kickoff BBQ the second weekend in June. Some events can be at our beach while others we can coordinate with TLPOA. This position is all about fun!

Volunteer Opportunities & Committees:

Beach Clean-up Day – the Saturday before Memorial Day Weekend (May) each year. Lots of sand spreading, weed cleanup, general maintenance, and straightening up the beach getting ready for the first official weekend of summer on Memorial Day Weekend.

Floats and Dock installation, management, and winterizing – 2-3 people needed – at the beginning of the season, usually on Beach Clean-up Day, volunteers put out the floats and swim dock. 2-3 people. At the end of the season, this group pulls in the floats and winterizes & secures the swim dock

Lake Management Committee Member – be the TEA liaison to TLPOA Lake Manager John Gusmano and Pond & Lake Connection (James Gorman, main contact). Participate in email communications and bring any concerns to the TEA & TEA Board. More info: http://truesdalelake.com/lake-management/

CSLAP Testing Member (1 person needed) – We are looking to rejoin the New York State Federation of Lake Associations “Citizens Statewide Lake Assessment Program” which uses trained volunteers to sample the water conditions of Truesdale Lake and hundreds of other NY State Lakes. More info is at: https://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/81576.html

Resident Canada Geese Registration and Egg Control program volunteers (2-3 people needed to go out to the islands in March and April) – Each year we get permits from the United States Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS) to oil and addle eggs in the nests of Resident Canada geese. 20+ years ago there were hundreds of Canada geese that would take up permanent residence on Truesdale Lake for the summer. This causes unhealthy conditions in the lake and on lawns. More information at truesdalelake.com/goose

Truesdale Lake Dock Committee (TLDC) – We have a joint TEA/TLPOA/Vreeland/Lake Shore Drive committee that accepts applications for new and renovated docks. The TLDC process is designed to help the homeowner comply with our requirements and the Town of Lewisboroâ€™s regulations..

Truesdale Fishing Committee – fishing guidelines and signage around Truesdale Lake. Fishing information here: http://truesdalelake.com/lake-management/fishing/

Ad-hoc Building Committee – We built two boat racks at the TEA beach. These racks have 2 spots available for TEA members. If you are interested in a spot on the rack, the season rental is $100. If you are interested in helping build an additional boat rack at our TEA Gilbert/Lake Shore boat launch property let us know. Other projects of the Building Committee in 2022 will include the new shed installation including a proposed tiki bar.

Landscaping committee – anyone with ideas to beautify our already lovely beach let us know. We have ornamental grasses along the boat launch fence side. Always looking for additional ideas to make it look good.

In 2023 we are looking to replace or repair the following items at the beach:

Boat Launch Dock bridge
Storage Shed

Anything else you can think of? Let us know…

Some helpful links for lake residents new and old:

TEA Map and Other TEA Resources Online
Map available at the website here: http://www.truesdalelake.com/tea

For residents new to the lake, download the TEA Welcome and Information Packet from this link above as well.

*If you are interested in volunteering for the TEA board or a specific activity, please email tea@truesdalelake.com or fill out this questionnaire.

Contact Information

Truesdale Estates Association
PO Box 363
South Salem, NY 10590
tea@truesdalelake.com

*if you are not current with your TEA dues, you cannot vote until your dues are brought current.

September 23, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Lewisboro Comprehensive Master Plan Update

Lewisboro Comprehensive Master Plan Update

The Town of Lewisboro is in the process of rewriting the Town Comprehensive Plan.

There was no significant mention of the lakes in the 1985 Master Plan or the 1999 update and we believe it’s essential for the new Plan to specifically include the goals of lake communities which coincide with priorities of the Town.

The current survey link is at the main page for the Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee: https://www.lewisborogov.com/cmpsc.

The deadline for responses to this survey is 10/31. This survey is looking for people who are interested in helping represent their area of Lewisboro.

Examples of lake community interests include preserving air and water quality, reducing stormwater runoff, eliminating invasive species, ensuring that our lakes remain healthy, etc.

The Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee will be compiling data from individual residents instead of from groups.

It’s important that as many lake residents as possible respond to the first survey in which they would agree to participate in the ongoing process of collecting input as community representatives.

Their commitment will be to help get the word out to their friends and neighbors that this is going on.

I have been asked to reach out to our lake communities and need your help.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Take care,
Rob Cummings
TEA President

August 30, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Lake Treatment tomorrow – August 31

Lake Treatment tomorrow – August 31

Our lake treatment company, Pond and Lake Connection will be treating our lake tomorrow, Tuesday, August 31st.Â There is no recreational restriction with the algae treatment SeClear.

There is, however, a 24 hr irrigation restriction.

August 26, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Why is the lake green? Late summer lake management.

Why is the lake green? Late summer lake management.

Welcome to August 🙂 The lake is always some shade of green in (late) August.

This is due to several things:

Lack of water turnover. It hasn’t rained in a while, at least not a significant amount that wasn’t immediately absorbed by the dry ground. (this is common in August and early September)
The water is warmer because of the warmer temperatures. (August)
These factors combined contribute to additional algae in the lake.

The lake will (eventually) cool down, the rains will (hopefully) return, and the lake will turn less green in a week, or two, or three. It depends on the weather.

May 8, 2022 – Cross River downstream from Truesdale Lake

Most of the time our algae is the green algae type. Occasionally the algae type we see can be blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) which can overwhelm a water body temporarily after an extended heat wave. We last had a potential harmful algae bloom (HAB) in 2013 (see article here). Please let us know (Contact us) if you suspect a bloom of this type on the lake. We have testing companies that can examine samples to determine what is present. We have not had these weather conditions this year and most likely will not as the end of the summer is approaching.

Some other things to keep in mind, in no particular order:

We manage our lake, we don’t have an on/off switch for the conditions.
Truesdale is a lake, which has natural living things in it. We need to maintain a balance. This is for the health of the lake and the other animals and plants we share it with.Â
The lake’s “filter” is the land around it. Pavement, lawn, and fertilizer are not good for this filtering system. The more pavement there is, the faster water travels into the lake. The faster the water travels, the more nutrients it brings in. More nutrients = more plant and algae growth.
Fertilizer on lawns near the lake or in the lake watershed go directly to fertilizing the weeds and algae. Don’t use fertilizer on your lawn. The best lakeside lawns are the smallest ones. Lawns are monocultures that don’t help the local ecosystem and attract geese to the lake (another source of unwanted nutrients). Please read this article about native vegetative buffers and why they are essential for lake health: https://truesdalelake.com/2016/03/article-link-plants-to-use-and-avoid-when-planting-a-vegetative-buffer/
The lake will never be a swimming pool. I think manyÂ understand this after having lived here for years, but occasionally new residents move in who are unfamiliar with the annual cycle. They may have expectations of water clarity and plant-free water that are neither realistic nor healthy.
Truesdale is a shallow lake. (deepest part overall is 16 feet, with the south end near the TEA beach having a deepest point around 8-10 feet). That means the sun is always able to reach the bottom of the lake. This means the entire 83 acres is fertile ground for plant growth. Plant (and algae) growth is going to happen. We can only affect it a certain amount.
Herbicides and Algaecides are not perfect by any stretch. They are effective in the short term, but they dissipate and dilute by their nature. However, they are theÂ most cost-effective solutionÂ we have for managing lake appearance and conditions.
Solutions other than herbicide treatment can be very expensive (dredging, mechanical harvesting) and would require a steady source of tax-based revenue and aÂ tax districtÂ to do on a lake-wide scale. Some smaller scale (i.e beach area, or several household lakefront) efforts that have been undertaken to address specific areas at specific times. These projects funded financially by individual homeowners or groups of homeowners, not lake-wide.
Other weed control alternatives likeÂ grass carp are essentially undirected biological weapons that give no guarantee that the carp will eat 1.) where your want them eat to and 2.) what you want them to eat. They are also invasive species and must be sterilized before introducing them or they will overwhelm the ecosystem.
Even under reproductive control, non-native grass carp can end up decimating the native plant life and allowing invasive plants to gain even more of a foothold if they prefer the taste of the native plants more than the invasives. These fish can also root around the bottom of our lake, stirring up muck and introducing previously buried nutrients back into the water column. This may actually end up causing more problems with water clarity and weed spread and growth. They also cannot be fished out (removed) if they become a nuisance.
Everything we do is a trade-off between time, money, and effectiveness. In addition to keeping a balance of nature, we are trying to balance the checkbook.

The bottom line is any solutions we employ are management, not control. We have a limited number of levers to move to affect weeds and algae, and we (and the professionals we hire) do their best in the environment we have.

New ideas and undertakings are always welcome — we are all in this together. If you are looking to do wetland buffer zone work, waterfront work, or lake floor work, a wetlands permit is needed from the town. Please visit their website for more information. Please consult them *before* starting anything since fines can be steep for work done without proper permits.

August 15, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Lake Treatment this week – Aug 17

Lake Treatment this week – Aug 17

Our lake management company, The Pond & Lake Connection (thepondconnection.com) will treat the lake for algae as needed this week Wednesday Aug 17. The treatment chemical is SeClear.

Treatment is weather and water temperature permitting. There is a 24hr restriction for irrigation if you use lake water on your plants or lawn. No other usage restriction. It is okay to swim and it is okay to irrigate one day later.

Thanks!

Truesdale Lake Management Committee
http://truesdalelake.com/lake-management

August 12, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Full Moon Regatta – Sept 10, 2022

Full Moon Regatta – Sept 10, 2022

Get yourself and your boat(s) ready. Bring the kids. Bring the lights!

Meet out in the center of the lake starting between 7:00-7:30pm. Sunset on 9/10 is 7:13pm and “nautical twilight” ends 8:13pm (stars start to appear). Astronomical twilight ends at 8:47pm (darkness). The moon is full on this day, so it will rise in the east at 7:45pm and it will start to be visible above the treeline about 30 minutes later.

See you out there!

More info on Moonlight Regattas on Truesdale Lake (with additional photos): https://truesdalelake.com/moonlight/

July 21, 2022
by rob
Comments Off on Lake Treatment Today – July 21, 2022

Lake Treatment Today – July 21, 2022

Our lake management company, The Pond & Lake Connection (thepondconnection.com) will treat the lake for algae as needed on Thursday July 21st.

Weather and water temperature permitting, the lake will be treated with and there is a 24hr restriction for irrigation if you use lake water on your plants or lawn. No other usage restriction. It is okay to swim and it is okay to irrigate by Friday night.

Thanks!

Truesdale Lake Management Committee
http://truesdalelake.com/lake-management