Silent summer at Lake Delhi

LAKE DELHI - Diane Bauers thinks 2011 is the most unusual summer at Lake Delhi. Not only is the water gone that usually runs behind her home, but so is the noise.

“It's strange not having any water, but also strange there isn't any activity,” said the longtime Lake Delhi resident and co-owner of B&B Sports of Lake Delhi. She said the occasional canoer may come by, but the hum of powerboats doesn't fill her days.

Last July 24, the bloated Maquoketa River surged over the dam at Lake Delhi. Twelve hours before the dramatic breach, Bauers was already battling the high water all around the property she and her husband, Al, have lived in for more than three decades.

“At 4 a.m. (before the breach), it was at our patio deck,” said Bauers, who lives about 100 feet off the shore.

The silent summer is also a concern for the businesses surrounding the lake bed.

Chris Stender is the owner and operator of Hartwick Marina, right on the water. Not only are his docks dry, but the area where the water usually flows is filled with thick weeds and busted and bent docks from downstream.

“The economic impact is what people need to understand,” said Stender, who said he has been on the lake since 1989. “When you talk of the dollar amounts Delaware County is missing right now because people are going other places.”

Newly appointed Lake Taxing District trustee Steve Leonard said a move by the state Legislature could help.

“One of those bills (proposed this session) allows us to tax ourselves at a higher level than we do,” Leonard said, which would raise more money toward the recovery.

Leonard said the state is covering a study to determine the cost and planning for rebuilding the dam. When the results are released, possibly this fall, legislators will take another look at how much the state would choose to pay for the repair.

The rebuilding project is estimated to have a total price tag of about

$12 million. Funding for the gap between state money and the total cost could come in a county bond referendum in Delaware County, or with money raised from Lake Delhi residents. In May, local leaders said money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency would help but wouldn't be a deal-breaker.

While money is on the way, Stender has only to point to the reality of this year. Some watercraft are in his shop for repair, but boat sales aren't exactly booming with no water nearby.

“This place means a lot to Eastern Iowa,” Stender said. “Not just Delaware County. People from, I believe, 10 different states own property on this lake.”

Stender's fuel pump sits idle as he isn't selling the 30,000 to 40,000 gallons he says he sells each season.