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Defenders of St. John's Bay - a 501c3 Organization
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Protect the Bay - Protect the Lake - Sustainably
The Bay: The Place to Paddleboard
The Bay: The Place to Paddleboard
The Bay: The Place to Paddleboard
St. John's Bay is the one spot on Nagawicka that is reliably quiet and calm enough for paddle boarders - off all skill levels
Thriving and Protected
The Bay: The Place to Paddleboard
The Bay: The Place to Paddleboard
St. John's Bay is the nursery of Nagawicka.
It's the place where the large trophy fish come each evening to feed. Life thrives here.
Keep it Calm
Promote Sustainable Living
Promote Sustainable Living
Honoring the DNR's own designation as a protected bay keeps the lake healthy, sustains our property values and economy.
Promote Sustainable Living
Promote Sustainable Living
Promote Sustainable Living
There are many ways to grow our economy. The smart way to do it is the one that is sustainable for the long run
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Donate to Help Us Protect the Bay
Here's How: Mail Donations to: St John's Bay Defenders P.O.Box 180317 Delafield 53018
And Here's WHY!
We understand the enthusiasm about any project like the pier at St. John’s Bay.
We too love the idea of being able to open up the city (in season) to more customers coming off their boats and heading downtown. Ideally - it’s wonderful.
Our concern about this pier in its proposed state is that it is not well planned. In fact - beyond construction - there has been no planning whatsoever. There is a rush to build it without considering all the impacts this will have. From fiscal (No plans for maintenance, or monitoring) - to environmental -no plans for protection of the bay ecosystem. In fact, the city seems to have delared ‘open season’ on the bay - placing no limits on the type and number of boats that will be motoring in and out of the narrow and shallow body of watergrinding up the lake bottom in the process.
The city has had more than two years to come up with plans to make this pier sustainable but instead has pushed to build it and “see what happens”.
That is not responsible government.
- The city has made no plans to manage this transient boat pier. This means any number of boats & people will be entering and exiting the bay - “just to check” if there’s an open spot. No time limits - no size limits - nothing.
- Someone could leave their boat there for hours - and block out others.
- Commercial enterprises could park and take up multiple spots - again with no limts.
- Any boats of any size can come in and out of the bay which (I’m sure you’re aware) is very shallow. Pontoons regularly get ‘stuck’ at the western edge of the bay - especially during drier periods of the year. Inboard motor boats - which cannot raise their propeller will not fare well in the bay. Who is going to dig them out?
- Additionally, (also not considered by the city) -We have a thriving boat rental business that will be put out of business because it launches from that spot. The one quiet spot on Nagawicka will disappear. Paddle-boarders/kayakers and novice sailors will have nowhere to go.
- The City Administration has not addressed any concern. The DNR ignored their own protective policies - which does not make them go away.
- The DNR (Department of Natural Resources)PERMIT is very misleading in nature. Folks think this means the DNR ‘did their job’ and found no reasons to worry about any negative environmental impact on the bay. That is NOT what happened.
In Fact:
The DNR only considered the pier structure.
In the ‘approval process, the DNR representative made it absolutely clear that she was “not considering” any potential impact on the health of the bay. That was confusing (at best) since concern about the potential negative impact on the bay was the exact reason the DNR required an application in the first place. The DNR Rep was considering nothing other than the materials proposed for its construction.
- The Permit (by being issued)implies DNR considered their own protection policies established with regard to St. John’s Bay. But they did not.
- Here are other policies in effect regarding the Bay - set by the DNR. The city is restricted from disturbing the lake bed in the bay at any time. The city cannot harvest weeds closer than 12 inches above the bottom. They cannot cut any weeds after July 1st. The DNR will not allow any dredging in any part of the bay -Because the DNR has established that the entire bay is a protected area. (It’s called an ASNRI - Area of Special Natural Resouces Interest”)
All of the protective restrictions set by the DNR were not considered in approving the permit for the pier. Why? We would like to know.
- This decision is being appealed. It must be.
- The city only has ½ the funds for the pier. They need an additional $45,000 from the state - and that committee next meets in August. So, even if $15,000 is put into the funds for that pier - it cannot be constructed immediately.
So the real question is: which business is the city supporting and which businesses is the city hurting with this proposed pier?
As presented- with the complete lack of maintenance, safety, and no plans for lake stewardship, We cannot support such a poorly planned project.
If the DNR won’t do its job, then we as the Defenders of St John's Bay must.
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Photo Gallery
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This is muck from just one boat
- Imagine the mess unlimited numbers of boats will cause
- It's wont be pretty -
- We have a chance to protect the bay
- Stop the construction of an unregulated transient pier
- Please keep reading and find out what you can do