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Resident raises alarm over Silver Lake decline; city outlines staged fixes and dredging estimate
Summary
At the May 4 council meeting, resident David Todd said Silver Lake had declined sharply and urged action. City Manager Chris Conrad described a staged approach—catch basins and shoreline rip-rap now, dredging later—and gave an estimated dredging cost range.
At its May 4 meeting, the Highland City Council heard from resident David Todd, 12514 Silver Lake Road, who said he is frustrated by debris and sediment in Silver Lake and urged the council to act.
"As of November 2021, the lake was 7,322 cubic acres and was down to 5,578 cubic acres," Todd said, and he told council members the Highland Silver Lake Watershed Plan forecasts 1–10 and 10–20 year steps to address the problem. He also cited a 2021 estimate that it would take about $21 million to "straighten the lake out." Todd asked what the long-term goal is beyond pursuing grants.
City Manager Chris Conrad responded during staff reports that the city is following a staged remediation strategy that prioritizes stopping further sediment intrusion before addressing existing lakebed sediment. Conrad said the city has focused on catch-basin construction at the north end and on extending rip-rap along shorelines. He described a privately sited catch basin built last year with a 350-acre catch area and said the city will construct an in-lake catch basin this year near Todd's residence that "will catch just over 400 acres." Conrad stated, "The estimate was $15M-$18M for the dredging." He added that dredging would likely require lobbying for state or federal funding.
Councilman Napper suggested setting aside a small portion of the grocery tax—"take a 1/16 of it, save and invest it"—as a locally controlled funding source to help pay for future dredging costs; City Manager Conrad said staff will take a look at that suggestion but noted the grocery tax has not been separated out historically and currently supports multiple budget functions.
Mayor Kevin B. Hemann and City Manager Conrad said the priority remains to stop erosion and inflow before undertaking expensive dredging. No formal action or vote on funding was taken at the meeting; staff reported continuing grant applications and in-year capital projects to reduce sediment inflow.
The council did not set a timeline for dredging. Council members and staff described the work as a multiyear effort involving right-of-way discussions and coordination with neighboring landowners; Conrad emphasized the need to secure outside funding for the large capital cost and said the city is taking small steps each year to address the problem.
