By Miriam Raftery
May 20, 2024 (Alpine)—Sweetwater Authority has still not replaced or repaired the floating fishing dock that was partially destroyed at Loveland Reservoir in Alpine more than a year ago by heavy storms back in January 2023. On Wednesday, agenda item 9.1 asks the board to decide whether or not to authorize buying and installing a replacement fishing platform in the reservoir.
“This is the second time this has been on the agenda since Sweetwater recovered the insurance funds,”says Russell Walsh, a citizens’ advocate who has been calling on Sweetwater to replace the floating fishing dock. According to Walsh, a majority vote is not guaranteed; he urges concerned residents to contact Sweetwater’s general manager, Carlos Quintero, to urge support. Residents can also speak at the meeting at 5 p.m. Wednesday in person or remotely.
“Earlier in the year the Engineering and operation committed voted to shelve it. One board member, Josie Calderon-Scott has made comments in subsequent meetings to get it back on the agenda,” he adds.
According to the staff report, staff now recommends that the Governing Board authorize replacing damaged portions of the Loveland Reservoir Recreation Program from South Shore Marine Construction, Inc. of Huntington Beach, CA, for an amount of $99,000. The district has received an insurance payment of $96,538 from its insurer, California Joint Powers Insurance Authority.
The board has several options, ranging from full or partial replacement, to simply keeping the insurance check and depositing it in the district’s general fund without repairing or replacing the floating fishing dock. The dock was initially paid for with federal Housing & Urban Development funds.
The floating fishing dock damage occurred after Sweetwater drained the reservoir to dead pool status for the first time ever, which also killed off fish. Walsh and others have advocated for the district to also restock the reservoir with fish, noting that Loveland was the only county reservoir offering free fishing. But so far, the district has declined to approve replacement of the fish, which also requires approval of state Fish & Wildlife authorities.
