Lake Martin News

New technology and more officers announced at LMRA annual meeting

A new CRM system will help Lake Martin Resource Association’s Board of Directors better communicate with its 1,000-plus membership, LMRA President Jodie McGirt said at the nonprofit lake advocacy organization’s annual meeting on June 17.

The new system went online in May, McGirt explained, with the first communication being a mid-June announcement for the breakfast meeting held at Kowaliga Restaurant. In addition, IT volunteers have successfully mapped all 600 hazard, nowake, idle-speed and safety buoys on Lake Martin, and a volunteer buoy management system is being developed to report missing and damaged buoys to repair crews in a timely manner.

“But if you see a damaged buoy or see that one is missing, please take a picture and, if you can, pindrop it or get the GPS coordinates and report it at lmra.info,” McGirt told more than 120 LMRA members and friends in attendance.

Alabama State Law Enforcement Association troopers at the meeting urged parents and boat owners to make sure minors know the laws before handing them keys to a water vessel.

“If they're under 18, I can’t write a citation, so I have to cuff them and take them to Montgomery,” explained Marine Patrol Lt. John Walker. “I don’t want to do that.”

Reckless and careless boating are among the most frequently issued citations, Walker said.

“Jumping a wake behind a boat with a personal watercraft is reckless boating. Intentionally splashing other boaters is reckless boating,” he said.

By July 4, boaters can expect that four troopers will be assigned to Lake Martin, but all the troopers might not be on the water at the same time, he noted in a request that boaters be patient with officers on response times.

“I live 45 minutes from where my boat is docked, and then the call might be another 30 minutes away from my boat. We’ll get there as quick as we can, but please be patient,” he said.

ALEA troopers have written seven BUI citations on Lake Martin since Memorial Day weekend. Walker also urged any boat operator who drinks more than the limit at a lakeside restaurant or friend’s lake house to call a towing service instead of driving the boat home.

“I guarantee the cost of the tow will be less than the cost of a BUI,” he said.

McGirt urged boat owners to be educated about the latest boating regulations and to take some accountability in making sure anyone to whom they hand their vessel keys also is educated.

LMRA legal counsel Steve Forehand told the membership there has been no action for more than six years on the Water Wars intervention in the Army Corps of Engineers water control manual for Lake Allatoona. The control manual has allowed the power plant at Allatoona to cease generation, putting the bulk of the flow requirement for the Alabama River on the Tallapoosa River.

And John Thompson told members that, though the COVID19 pandemic stymied some cleanup efforts in recent years, renewed efforts are being made to revive litter cleanups and recruit volunteers.

“That’s what makes it work,” Thompson said. “It’s not LMRA; it’s you.”

~ Betsy Iler

Membership key in HOBO advocacy

Lake Martin Homeowners and Boat Owners takes on the role of coordinator for lake neighborhoods that have no homeowners assciations, explained HOBO board member Matt Campbell when members and friends gathered June 10 in Dadeville for the annual meeting.

“If you and a group of neighbors want to implement enforcement of covenants in your deeds, HOBOs can coordinate the coalition, so neighbors can speak with a common voice,” Campbell explained. “A large percentage of residents at Lake Martin are not in a subdivision.”

Situations in which such coordination could be useful include pending undesireable construction and noise issues.

Outgoing HOBO President Harry DeNegre urged members to invite neighbors to join HOBOs to increase its influence.

Alabama State Rep. Ed Oliver (Dist. 81) urged lake residents and visitors to create emergency plans.

“If you’re out on the lake or at the lake house, it takes time for the ambulance to get to you. What are you going to do in the meantime? Think about that and make a plan,” he said.

Oliver also reviewed recent legislation pertaining to Lake Martin. See the article on page 62.

Addressing crime prevention, Tallapoosa County Sheriff Jimmy Abbett credited former HOBO president Jesse Cunningham with driving the formation of 14 Neighborhood Watch organizations around Lake Martin.

“If you see something that doesn't look right, say something,” Abbett urged attendees.

~ Betsy Iler