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Resident urges Wixom council to consider ordinance limiting wake-boat use on Loom Lake
Summary
A Loom Drive resident told council that wake-boat wakes are accelerating shoreline erosion and damaging habitat on Loom Lake and delivered a Michigan DNR report; he asked council to consider an ordinance to limit or ban wake-boat wake-mode on small lakes under 100 acres.
During the second call to the public, resident William Day of Loom Drive urged the council to consider an ordinance to limit or prohibit wake-boat wake mode on Loom Lake, citing shoreline erosion, habitat damage and safety concerns for swimmers.
Day provided council copies of a Michigan Department of Natural Resources report and asked members to read the executive summary and the recommendations for lakes under 100 acres. He said wake boats, which add ballast to increase wake size for surfing, create wakes that persist hundreds of feet and are causing bank erosion, bottom-sediment disturbance and damage to private moorings.
"This is a very thorough and well-researched article," Day told council, and he requested the city look at local options for limiting wake-boat use on small lakes. Council members thanked Day for the materials and said staff would review the DNR guidance and consider adding the issue to a future agenda for more formal consideration, enforcement implications and potential patrol or signage needs.
Any ordinance or local rule would require careful drafting and an enforcement plan; council members noted the city currently lacks a dedicated patrol boat and would need to weigh enforcement mechanisms, public outreach and legal limits of local authority.
