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Resident presses Highland officials on Silver Lake’s future; city cites grants and long lead time for dredging
Summary
A Highland resident asked city leaders whether they have a long-term plan to address silting at Highland Silver Lake (built 1962). City Manager Chris Conrad said small conservation projects funded largely by grants are underway, the city spends about $100,000 a year locally, and dredging is unlikely within five years but possible in about ten.
David Todd, a Highland resident, pressed the Highland City Council on July 1 about a long-term plan for Highland Silver Lake, noting the lake was built in 1962 and that "the average life of a lake, in Illinois, is 50–60 years." Todd asked whether the city planned to let the lake "fill in" or take substantive action to restore capacity.
Mayor Kevin B. Hemann said the city does not have a firm long-term dredging plan. "I don’t know that we have a long-term solution. At some point there is going to be drudging done," Hemann said.
City Manager Chris Conrad provided more detail on current efforts and the expected timeline. Conrad said smaller projects overseen in partnership with Heartland Conservation have slowed siltation and improved water quality and that engineers and consultants have been consulted. "It is not something that will be done in a year or two," Conrad said, adding that "probably there will be nothing in the next five years, but probably in ten years." He said the city currently spends about $100,000 per year locally on these projects, which represents roughly 10% of total project costs, with the remainder covered by grant funds.
Conrad also noted that a recent capacity study found most capacity loss is north of the interstate and that localized conditions make silting more prominent in some areas. He said the city will continue to pursue grants, and that larger interventions such as dredging would be timed when federal or other major funding is available.
The exchange did not produce a new schedule or funding commitment for dredging; officials said they will continue incremental conservation projects, seek grant funding, and consult engineers before undertaking any large-scale dredging. The council took no formal vote on the lake at the July 1 meeting.
