Did lake district make right move?

Why is Geneva Lake always mentioned, always the example, whenever options to improve Lake Koshkonong are explored?

No one, not the Army Corp., not the WDNR, certainly not the RKLD, is advancing the notion that Koshkonong can be transformed into the uber-rich zip code locale that is the city of Lake Geneva, the village of Fontana or the village of Williams Bay.

Koshkonong is Everyman's Paradise, where it is still relatively affordable to raise a family on her shoreline - to teach the kids to get-up on skiis or landing that first walleye.

And while Koshkonong will NEVER have the depth that Geneva Lake has, for those who have tried to boat on that body of water, even during her busiest, best blue-sky day, Koshkonong is never as conjested as Geneva.

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By GREG PECK
Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Lake Koshkonong, which is north of Janesville, will never be Geneva Lake, about 25 miles to the southeast in Walworth County. Boats large and small clog Geneva, which was created during our last glacial period 10,000 years ago. Geneva spans 8.2 square miles. Its depth averages 63 feet.

Koshkonong is twice as large, but it was created by the downstream Rock River dam. Like the river, it lacks water clarity. Its average depth is just 5 to 8 feet.

That shallow depth naturally brings big waves during stormy weather that can trigger shoreline erosion. State and federal officials are studying Koshkonong to determine the viability of a proposal that could solve two problems. Dredging would add depth to parts of the lake, while the material could be used to create islands that would ease shore erosion.

Funding for the $400,000 study is falling short because of budget squeezes, however. Last weekend, property owners attending the Rock-Koshkonong Lake District’s annual meeting agreed unanimously to boost the per parcel special projects fee by $15 to make up that shortfall.

Was that the smart move?

We’ll share our perspective in Thursday’s Gazette editorial.

Greg Peck can be reached at (608) 755-8278 or gpeck@gazettextra.com