Lake Austin - Banning wakesurfing and boarding?

[OTN]

Hey all,

This is probably more interesting to those down here in Texas, but I thought this would be as good of a place as any to let the topic be known.

On Oct 28th the city council met and had a discussion about the height of bulkheads along the lake, with the intent of moving towards "sloped" bulkheads which would help preserve the natural contour of the lake. As a part of this discussion, homeowners and some parks boards members talked about limiting the type of boating activities on the lake, including banning both wakesurfing and wakeboarding.

No decisions have yet been made. From what I hear a "pro-wake" protest is being planned at City Hall on Nov 18th.

Some sketchy details can be found here:

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/new-limits-for-lake-austin-walls-trams-977520.html?page=1

-From the article:

"The city should also consider limiting the size, number or type of watercraft, which generate the waves that the walls are built to repel, said Clint Small , a former parks board member who led a committee that oversaw and reviewed issues related to the lake. Especially problematic are boats that owners weigh down to create big wakes for surfing and wakeboarding, he said. Even though there are other causes of the erosion, Small said, "the city is putting all of the burden of fixing the problem on individual homeowners." Several government agencies regulate different facets of Lake Austin. Some parks board members have expressed an interest in figuring out ways to better manage boating activity on the lake but haven't made any decisions about it."

I'm not sure they have enough cops or ticket books to try and get me to stop riding just because a few multi-millionaires have an issue with their yards.

t

[stroker-ace]

Hey all,

This is probably more interesting to those down here in Texas, but I thought this would be as good of a place as any to let the topic be known.

On Oct 28th the city council met and had a discussion about the height of bulkheads along the lake, with the intent of moving towards "sloped" bulkheads which would help preserve the natural contour of the lake. As a part of this discussion, homeowners and some parks boards members talked about limiting the type of boating activities on the lake, including banning both wakesurfing and wakeboarding.

No decisions have yet been made. From what I hear a "pro-wake" protest is being planned at City Hall on Nov 18th.

Some sketchy details can be found here:

http://www.statesman.com/news/local/new-limits-for-lake-austin-walls-trams-977520.html?page=1

-From the article:

"The city should also consider limiting the size, number or type of watercraft, which generate the waves that the walls are built to repel, said Clint Small , a former parks board member who led a committee that oversaw and reviewed issues related to the lake. Especially problematic are boats that owners weigh down to create big wakes for surfing and wakeboarding, he said. Even though there are other causes of the erosion, Small said, "the city is putting all of the burden of fixing the problem on individual homeowners." Several government agencies regulate different facets of Lake Austin. Some parks board members have expressed an interest in figuring out ways to better manage boating activity on the lake but haven't made any decisions about it."

I'm not sure they have enough cops or ticket books to try and get me to stop riding just because a few multi-millionaires have an issue with their yards.

t

what is this? europe? either ban all motorized boating or none. the tubers create wakes just as heavy by powerturning every 50 yeards. unbelievable.

i ask you this...is it the millionaires and their yards? or is it the austin tree-huggers and erosion?

[OTN]

what is this? europe? either ban all motorized boating or none. the tubers create wakes just as heavy by powerturning every 50 yeards. unbelievable.

i ask you this...is it the millionaires and their yards? or is it the austin tree-huggers and erosion?

I'm sure there's enough blame to go around- we can give both those groups plenty.

[stroker-ace]

Indeed. I live up in DFW, but I am very familiar with Lake Austin. Why dont the bulkheads solve the problem anyways? I am sure plenty of those mansions have Mastercrafts in their boathouses. I am also sure millionaires are smart enough to realize what all comes with living on the shore of a lake.

[WakeGirl]

There are already areas out here that have banned wake enhancement on some stretches of waterways. I've tried to tell you guys that it's not a question of "if" this is going to happen in your area, but "when".

[stroker-ace]

Well, my lake sees its share of erosion, but it is because it floods and drains very rapidly. One of the huge homes on the bluff almost lost its pool last year to a landslide. They had to build a new 50' tall retaining wall. This was obviously not due to large wakes. I hope the Army Corps of Engineers recognizes that.

[Michigan boarder]

What's stupid is in the article they criticize a sloped seawall because it can accumulate algae and debris for snake harborage. Isn't that called ecology? I can't believe they put that in writing, if I werre on that lake that would be my platform. It's purely driven by short sighted home owners.

[OTN]

There are already areas out here that have banned wake enhancement on some stretches of waterways. I've tried to tell you guys that it's not a question of "if" this is going to happen in your area, but "when".

Total bummer- sorry to hear about that. It saddens me to think that others have nothing better to do than ruin others' enjoyment.

[Malibuswany]

That is an area that we are considering a move to. If this passes it will be off our short list for sure.

[Chia]

This is an issue that should be addressed by boat manufacturers as a group, they have a lot to lose unless a defense to this thinking is found.

It would be pretty easy for a non-boating council member having lunch with some wealthy, lake shore, home owners to be convinced that surfing is bad idea for a lot of reasons.

[stroker-ace]

That is an area that we are considering a move to. If this passes it will be off our short list for sure.

Lake Travis is in Austin too...

[Bill_AirJunky]

The lake we ride on is only about 700 acres.... takes me about 20 min to ride all the way around. We haven't had the issue yet, but seeing how inconsiderate some boat owners are, it won't surprise me the day it shows up here.

Some issues we've seen this summer:

- Surfers & wakeboarders riding inside the speed buoys, bonking & sliding off the bouys.

- Boarders riding close enough to a dock that they can slide a dock or spray someone on it. Their supposed to be 100' away from any docks. In doing this their boat's wake rocks every dock for 500' in either direction.

- Boaters driving at speed, along the buoy line, counter-clockwise around the lake. When they approach another boat head on, their supposed to yield to their right (into the middle of the lake). But more than a few times I've seen them yield to the shore. This is a mess, especially at speed & especially with all the floating toys, trampolines, swimmers, paddleboarders, floating docks & slides homeowners have inside the speed buoys.

- A local competitive jetskier has setup his own obstacle course in the middle of the lake (obstacles that other boaters have been hitting).

- We have 2 slalom courses now. One is in sad disrepair, missing anchors, missing buoys, etc. I said something to the owner this year & he insists that it's not on the surface. I told him he's right, it's about 1' below the surface.

People are going to have to be considerate of each other. Driving like idiots & crankin up their tunes at all hours is not going to make others on the lake very happy. So when it comes down to a vote, they run the risk of losing because those instances stand out in people's minds.

Edited November 2, 2010 by Bill_AirJunky

[jkendallmsce]

The lake we ride on is only about 700 acres.... takes me about 20 min to ride all the way around. We haven't had the issue yet, but seeing how inconsiderate some boat owners are, it won't surprise me the day it shows up here.

Some issues we've seen this summer:

- Surfers & wakeboarders riding inside the speed buoys, bonking & sliding off the bouys.

- Boarders riding close enough to a dock that they can slide a dock or spray someone on it. Their supposed to be 100' away from any docks. In doing this their boat's wake rocks every dock for 500' in either direction.

- Boaters driving at speed, along the buoy line, counter-clockwise around the lake. When they approach another boat head on, their supposed to yield to their right (into the middle of the lake). But more than a few times I've seen them yield to the shore. This is a mess, especially at speed & especially with all the floating toys, trampolines, swimmers, paddleboarders, floating docks & slides homeowners have inside the speed buoys.

- A local competitive jetskier has setup his own obstacle course in the middle of the lake (obstacles that other boaters have been hitting).

- We have 2 slalom courses now. One is in sad disrepair, missing anchors, missing buoys, etc. I said something to the owner this year & he insists that it's not on the surface. I told him he's right, it's about 1' below the surface.

People are going to have to be considerate of each other. Driving like idiots & crankin up their tunes at all hours is not going to make others on the lake very happy. So when it comes down to a vote, they run the risk of losing because those instances stand out in people's minds.

Having spent time on Lake Tapps, you took your life into your hands during the summer months. It may be longer, but a a couple of years ago, there were 3-4 deaths on that lake. Folks are ignorant of boating laws/rules, their attitude is F*** everyone else, and lets see just how loud this stereo will go.

SO when you mix the above chuckleheads with a few beers, its no wonder there aren't more deaths.

[OTN]

The lake we ride on is only about 700 acres.... takes me about 20 min to ride all the way around. We haven't had the issue yet, but seeing how inconsiderate some boat owners are, it won't surprise me the day it shows up here.

Some issues we've seen this summer:

- Surfers & wakeboarders riding inside the speed buoys, bonking & sliding off the bouys.

- Boarders riding close enough to a dock that they can slide a dock or spray someone on it. Their supposed to be 100' away from any docks. In doing this their boat's wake rocks every dock for 500' in either direction.

- Boaters driving at speed, along the buoy line, counter-clockwise around the lake. When they approach another boat head on, their supposed to yield to their right (into the middle of the lake). But more than a few times I've seen them yield to the shore. This is a mess, especially at speed & especially with all the floating toys, trampolines, swimmers, paddleboarders, floating docks & slides homeowners have inside the speed buoys.

- A local competitive jetskier has setup his own obstacle course in the middle of the lake (obstacles that other boaters have been hitting).

- We have 2 slalom courses now. One is in sad disrepair, missing anchors, missing buoys, etc. I said something to the owner this year & he insists that it's not on the surface. I told him he's right, it's about 1' below the surface.

People are going to have to be considerate of each other. Driving like idiots & crankin up their tunes at all hours is not going to make others on the lake very happy. So when it comes down to a vote, they run the risk of losing because those instances stand out in people's minds.

Good points, all.

[factoryKITTED]

wont happen

[Stanley Wheelhouse]

Are not all wake boat hulls designed to enhance wakes? There fore the hull itself is a wave making device.

With that rationale are you proposing to ban all wake boats on lake Austin.

Then your erosion would be caused by the large cruisers and power turners instead.

The erosion on Austin has nothing to do with wake surfing but the level of traffic on the lake.

This lady is clearly an idiot.

Has anyone tried to email her?

[factoryKITTED]

We have everything under control.

[factoryKITTED]

Surfers and Friends of Lake Austin,

After hearing your outrage, the City Council has assured us in writing that they will not bring up a regulation or ban on wakesurfing Lake Austin. This is awesome news!! The City Council definitely felt pressure from opponents of the bulkhead ordinance to regulate wakes, and now the Council knows that is not an option. Below is the email exchange a friend of mine had with Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez.

In light of this, I think that anyone who still wants to attend the hearing on November 18th should respect the fact that we have received this assurance from our city representatives. If the ordinance proposed at the Nov 18 hearing effectively deals with wave-calming bulkheads, my personal belief is that we should support the ordinance. But in any case, we are assured that the Council will not try to regulate wake size or wake activities in this or any future ordinance.

Edited November 3, 2010 by factoryKITTED

[factoryKITTED]

Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez Response

I responded to an email you sent out but have not heard back from you so I thought I would try again.

In this day and age of insighting fear on an issue to get folks "engaged"; this topic has gotten completely out of hand.

Regardless of what the Mayor said, it is the ENTIRE council that makes any policy decision. We are not discussing, nor have we, nor will we, regarding wakesurfing on Lake Austin. We are not posted to take action on that subject and therefore are precluded by law from taking any other action than the issue of bulkheads and their designs.

I spoke with the Mayor directly today on this subject and he does agree that his statement may have caused alarm but he in no way meant it to be inturpreted in the manner that it has. He also stated that he is not, nor planning to bring up the issue of banning wake surfing on Lake Austin.

Please take this opportunity to clear the misinformation being spread.

If you have any questions what-so-ever, I am glad to discuss and help in any way.

Thanks,

Mike

Mayor Pro Tem Mike Martinez

310 W. 2nd Street

Austin, Texas

512.974.2264

Edited November 3, 2010 by factoryKITTED

[factoryKITTED]

Mayor Pro Tem Martinez,

Thank you for your email.  I am glad to hear that the Council will not be taking

any action to regulate or ban wakesurfing on Lake Austin.  Please understand

that my intention was not to incite fear, but simply to inform other citizens

about action that could affect us and to let our representatives hear from us on

issues we care about.

I have followed issues relating to Lake Austin for many years.  Several years

ago, the City proposed a plan to combat the hydrilla in Lake Austin.  The City's

plan was to introduce a moderate number of sterile, grass-eating carp into Lake

Austin to deal with the issue.  I testified in support of the City's plan, and I

thought the plan was extremely successful. 

A couple weeks ago, the Statesman ran an article on the proposed new bulkhead

ordinance.  In the article, Clint Small, a former parks board member, stated

that he thought that boats with wakes needed to be regulated on Lake Austin.  I

was concerned about this stance, and I was also insterested in the bulkhead

issue.  So I came to the hearing last week.  At the hearing, I testified in

support of the bulkhead ordinance and of not regulating wake size or wake

activities.

During the hearing, you made a motion that the Council consider a revised

ordinance at its November 18th meeting.  You stated that the revised ordinance

should (1) address grandfathering of existing bulkheads in some way, (2) deal

with the issue of reclaiming land and provide some kind of methodology, and (3)

possibly address wake size of boats.  I was very suprised by this third point. 

While I agree that this issue would not be considered germane to the posted

subject of the hearing and of the ordinance, it caused me great alarm that the

Council intended to address this issue. 

After the hearing, Mayor Leffingwell walked up to a conversation I was having

with Pat Murphy, and he turned to Pat and said that they needed to do something

about the wakes on the lake.  The rest of that exchange was recounted in

my email to my wakesurfing colleagues, so I won't repeat it here.  Again, while

this subject did not appear to be germane, I'm sure you understand why I would

very logically believe that the Council intended to address this issue. 

The next day (Friday), I emailed Pat Murphy to discuss this subject

further and to express my concern about any possible regulation or restriction

on wakesurfing.  His reply was, "I am not certain where Council will land on

this issue.  Obviously, there is a cause and effect scenario that may require

more than just updated shoreline protection."  So again, I was not given any new

information to lead me to believe the Council may not take up this issue.

So yesterday, I sent the email to friends and colleagues who love Lake Austin. 

Perhaps naively, I did not expect the effect of my email to reach the

proportions it did.  My intentions were for those who love Lake Austin to

have an opportunity to tell their representatives how they feel about regulating

wakes on Lake Austin.  There were very good reasons for all of us to believe

this would be possible, based on your motion at the heaing, the Mayor's comments

after the hearing, and my email exchange with Mr. Murphy.

Again, I am glad to hear that Council will not be pursuing this, and I thank you

for your email and your service to our city.  I will inform my friends and

colleagues of this, and I will let them know they do not need to raise this issue at the 

November 18th hearing.

[wakechick3]

Thanks for the update.

I believe it is good etiquette to wakesurf in the parts of the lake where there are no/few shoreline structures as possible. I understand this can't acomodate everyone, but is respectful of the investment that those fortunate enough to live on the lake have made in their property.

PS- the hydrilla is the worst I have seen since the lake was last lowered for the winter freeze. Scary.

[OTN]

FactoryKITTED,

Obviously you have outdone me. A million thanks from the rest of the Austin community. I have a few friends/colleagues who are very interested in this topic, so please let me know what we can do to help.

T

p.s. I was keeping my boat on a lift on the N end of the lake, near the dam, this past summer, which meant EVERY time I headed out I had to hop in the water and clean hydrilla from the prop. Did you know they planeted that stuff on purpose for fish attraction?

[obski]

As Wakegirl said, other areas have dealt with these issues, including on our local body of water, the Willamette River. The frustrating part was that while there was an opportunity for public discussion and meetings, it seemed like that input was completely ignored by the rules-making body. In our case, it seemed like the decision had been made ahead of time catering to the wishes of a few people that had the governor's ear.

Hope it goes better for you and for others that will be facing this in the future.

[Steve B.]

FactoryKITTED,

Obviously you have outdone me. A million thanks from the rest of the Austin community. I have a few friends/colleagues who are very interested in this topic, so please let me know what we can do to help.

T

p.s. I was keeping my boat on a lift on the N end of the lake, near the dam, this past summer, which meant EVERY time I headed out I had to hop in the water and clean hydrilla from the prop. Did you know they planeted that stuff on purpose for fish attraction?

Is this the area near "The Oasis" restaurant ? That whole water system is simply amazing !

Steve B.

[factoryKITTED]

I mean i guess its "near" the Oasis.....however the Oasis is on Lake Travis which would be on the other side of the dam from Lake Austin. So its near the Oasis yet, on the other side of the dam on Lake Austin