HADLEY — A continued effort to improve Lake Warner, by reducing the levels of phosphorus at the 70-acre body of water in North Hadley, could be supported through the Community Preservation Act account.
The $9,450 request from the Friends of Lake Warner is the lone application for funding coming before the CPA Committee, which has $1.93 million available for affordable housing, open space, recreation and historic projects. The committee typically takes applications in two cycles each year.
Brian Pearson, president of the Friends group, said the money would help the organization with the beginning stage of restoration related to the problem of phosphorus loading in the lake, caused by both existing sediment and runoff, which affects the recreational enjoyment and negatively impacts the aquatic life.
“We’re seeking approximately $10,000 right now to help us determine exactly how we’ll go forward with that restoration,” Pearson said.
The hope, he said, is to apply Phoslock, a chemical not yet approved by Massachusetts. This would lead to a healthier ecosystem, with less aquatic invasive species, fewer algae blooms and more oxygen for the fish. Pearson said the idea is to treat the sediment in the lake that has built up over 300 years
In 2023, the group got almost $20,000 from the CPA account to hire a consultant to do a vegetation study. That has spurred long-range action and preservation planning for the lake, which has been challenged by ecological problems in the watershed.
Becca Smith, who is working on behalf of the Friends group, said one or two years of Phoslock use should resolve the internal loading, and wouldn’t need to be repeated indefinitely.
Some nutrients are still being imported into the stream that feeds Lake Warner, but most of the problems at the lake, associated with fertilizer from farm fields and landscaping activity, has been reduced with more rigid regulations, Smith said.
Members of the CPA Committee are supportive of the proposal, with no one objecting in a straw poll. A formal vote is likely to take place at the committee’s March 2 meeting, which would then get the item on the warrant for annual Town Meeting, where voters would decide whether to approve or reject the spending.
“I think it’s a good project, and it’s a little hidden gem in Hadley that could be polished up and made nice,” said member Ray Mieczkowski.
With no other applications for CPA funding this spring, the committee got an update on the $904,799 that has been reserved for outstanding projects, with $350,000 going toward repairing the steeple at the First Congregational Church.
That project is still underway, with steel delivered to the Middle Street site for a contractor to begin building the new structure. Other work on the historic steeple is being done off-site.
Another big project is $150,000 for new doors at Golden Court, the Hadley Housing Authority property. That work has not yet begun, though.
On hold is $88,250 for a Town Hall space needs and exterior study, while complete is $45,464 to install a new back fence at the Old Hadley Cemetery.