Walton Lake drawdown nearly done, golf cart bridge to be demolished soon

FAIRFIELD – The drawdown of Walton Lake is nearly complete, and the contractor hopes to soon demolish the golf cart bridge.

Fairfield City Engineer and Public Works Director Melanie Carlson told the Fairfield City Council Nov. 24 that contractor Drish Construction of Fairfield would be moving its equipment to the lake later this week or next, and could then begin demolishing the bridge. As of noon Wednesday, Nov. 26, no heavy machinery had been moved to the lake.

The city began drawing down the lake in late September, a necessary precursor to replacing the golf cart bridge with a box culvert, essentially an earthen dam that will allow water and aquatic life to pass through an 8 foot by 10 foot opening. Installing the box culvert required the city to draw down the lake 11.5 feet.

As of Wednesday, most of the lakebed north of the golf cart bridge had been exposed. Carlson said the lake needed to be drawn down a bit more to accommodate Drish’s equipment, and told the council that the city may have to pump water out of the lake.

The Union asked Carlson if she had received any complaints about a foul smell from fish that died during the drawdown, and she had she had not personally received any complaints, but wasn’t sure about other city staff.

In other news, the city is also in talks with the Walton Club about renewing its lease. The Walton Club leases the land it sits on from the city for $1 per year, and its 10-year lease is expiring in December. The council’s property committee met Nov. 13 and discussed the lease. Committee chair Doug Flournoy said the committee members have recommended another 10-year lease, though the Walton Club has indicated it wants a 25-year lease. No one from the Walton Club Board was at that property committee meeting.

City Attorney John Morrissey spoke about how the two sides are updating the language of the lease to specify which parts of the land and shoreline the club is responsible for maintaining.

Mayor Connie Boyer asked Flournoy if the two sides would be able to finalize a lease agreement before the end of the year, and Flournoy said he was confident they could.

At previous city council meetings, some Fairfield residents such as Ed Noyes have criticized the lease with the Walton Club for a perceived ambiguity about whether the golf cart bridge was the city’s responsibility or the club’s responsibility, and whether the city was required to replace the bridge or merely maintain it.

The Union sent an email to the three members of the committee, Flournoy, Paul Gandy and Elizabeth Estey, about whether they intended to alter portions of the lease pertaining to the golf cart bridge, but had not heard back from any of the members by press time Wednesday.

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Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com

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