by Mary Rupert
Welborn Lake, which was covered by algae earlier this year to the point that water couldn’t be seen, will be the subject of a meeting from 4:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 28, at the West Wyandotte Library, 1737 N. 82nd St., Kansas City, Kansas.
The meeting on Nov. 28 is sponsored by the Unified Government Public Works Department and Shockey Consultants. It is a “come and go” meeting, according to UG information.
In the summer, the lake’s condition became an issue, with something finally being done about it.
The Leavenworth Road Association this past summer offered to supply funding for chemicals to clean up the lake, and a Shawnee, Kan., conservationist saw a broadcast on Fox4 News about the lake. There also were published reports in the Wyandotte Daily about it. The conservationist volunteered his time to clean up the pond.
Lou Braswell, executive director of the Leavenworth Road Association, said the scum has pretty much been removed from the lake, because of the conservationist’s work this summer, although there is still some algae there. The lake project has been on the LRA’s list of areas to improve for some years.
Braswell said the algae was sent off for testing to a lab, the results are back, and after the algae is all removed, the lake can be treated with chemicals.
Welborn Lake is a private lake, and property owners and community members will be asked for their opinions on what to do with the lake. According to a UG letter sent to residents in that area, they will be asked to take a survey and also will hear about possible solutions involving the algae, as well as concerns about trash, water quality and runoff.
One of the questions in the survey asks who should take care of the lake, the property owners there, residents there, a neighborhood group, the UG or a volunteer group.
Braswell said there may be different proposals brought up for the future of the lake. While some will see the lake as a private landowners’ concern only, others see it as a possible park. The UG did not get too involved in it in years past because it was privately owned.
“It’s a community landmark,” Braswell said. She said she was glad that something might be done about it. News clippings from the early 1900s show that it was once a tourist attraction on the interurban for fishing and swimming.
For an earlier story, visit https://wyandotteonline.com/column-taking-another-look-at-cleaning-up-welborn-lake/.
