Beginning of the Pond dream

[BeckyK]

Re-reading your first post, I'm thinking the main purpose is water management, but in the future you may add fish.
That's great! Maybe, as you said, next year you can add fish. If everything works out, you can get an ecosystem going next year by adding fish and plants.
Reading here, you will find many ideas on different plants and fish that you may enjoy. You can turn your hole with water in it into a wonderful garden feature.
Keep us posted on your progress.

Yes, the current objective is definitely water management. The areas where the two sump pumps are pushing water right now stays wet for too long. In fact there are a couple ruts from one of the big trucks that was here during construction of the house that still have standing water from the snow melting and the couple of rain showers we've had over the last month or so. Mind you, the snow has been gone for at least 6 or 7 weeks now everywhere else. LoL

But I do want to make it look nice. If only the budget would allow it all at once!

Thanks to everyone for the support, and the tidbits of advice so far. It's been a great help and hopefully one day I'll be able to come in to help the newcomers.

 

[GBBUDD]

Politcs what has this country become when the damn dam gets taxed at 10 percent of the job cost for that kinda rate I better see there azz swinging a shovel on the project

 

[poconojoe]

Agree with GBBUDD. It's a sin you have get permission and pay for permits to make improvements on real estate that belongs to you. It seems this is the opposite of freedom. And the fact that I'm sure you already pay a mound of money for real estate and school tax makes it even more preposterous.
I always wondered why my neighbors who had no children have to pay school tax. Or why people who have one child pay the same as those who have five. We still live in the best country, but there are some flaws.

 

[BeckyK]

I guess I didn't mind the idea of having to get a permit as much as the fact we already have an open conditional use permit with the county and general use permit with the township to build the house. But we had to pay for another of each in order to dig the pond. I feel we should be able to amend those open permits. I would have been OK with a fee for an amendment over paying full price a 2nd time. But if we didn't do that we'd have to pay almost $3000 just for the fill we need around the house. Then would still have the water management to figure out to have a dry yard in the back. Either way the money has to be spent. I just don't feel that the governing bodies are being fair about the permits considering we've got open ones already.

But we'll get through it, and hopefully before the snow flies again in Wisconsin we'll have a pond

 

[BeckyK]

We left off on this thread with commentary about the politics, so it only seems right to give an update on these processes we're currently going through.

Last Thursday we attended the Zoning & Planning Committee board meeting at our township. We expected to go in at 7 PM, be told we have to fence in the back yard and be home by 7:30 PM. What a surprise it was when we first were heading home at 9:30 PM with the discussion tabled till the next meeting in July where we need to provide additional info on the volume of water we'll be pumping into the pond from the sump pumps, estimated pond volume, an overflow plan and a plan if we hit an artesian spring when excavating.

Apparently there have been other water related issues in our neighborhood for years that noone felt was necessary to bring up at other meetings before our pond project came along. There was also several points made by one particular guy that the natural flow of water would be disrupted by this. I don't know...i personally think that whoever built the very first house in that neighborhood disrupted that. But what do I know?

One of the board members said the area we are in was meant to have cottages by the lake, not houses. So we asked why building permits for structures other than cottages were approved then. We did not receive an answer.

One neighbor swore up and down that his yard is being flooded by everyone on our side of the road. One neighbor stated that the sewer line we're tied into was put in illegally and goes right through his property. Supposedly the individual that did it did so without his permission on a day he was not home. And they all felt our pond was going to make the overall water issues worse not better....hence why we need to bring more into to the next meeting. In fact, a few of them laughed when I said we had researched trees that would have a higher usage rate for water and found that weeping willow would be a good choice. So we are planning on putting in at least 4 along with other water loving trees to help with water management in our yard.

We also listened to two people telling the board "It's my lot so I'm going to do [XYZ] and there's nothing you can do about it." Meanwhile, my husband and I are thinking... well, this is our lot and what does any of that have to do with our pond?

In addition, the board wanted to know our plan for mosquito population control. We are less than 1000 feet from a large lake. I'm feeling like that shouldn't even be a topic of discussion. But I don't know, maybe I'm wrong? LoL

In the last 3 days we have been able to address everything except the possibility of an artesian spring. The people were mostly seeking an answer to whether the head pressure would have a risk of flooding everyone. A call to a local well digger is in the to do list for this week.

Maybe we'll win this battle, but wow! What a journey this has become.

 

[addy1]

Wow good luck!

 

[GBBUDD]

We left off on this thread with commentary about the politics, so it only seems right to give an update on these processes we're currently going through.

Last Thursday we attended the Zoning & Planning Committee board meeting at our township. We expected to go in at 7 PM, be told we have to fence in the back yard and be home by 7:30 PM. What a surprise it was when we first were heading home at 9:30 PM with the discussion tabled till the next meeting in July where we need to provide additional info on the volume of water we'll be pumping into the pond from the sump pumps, estimated pond volume, an overflow plan and a plan if we hit an artesian spring when excavating.

Apparently there have been other water related issues in our neighborhood for years that noone felt was necessary to bring up at other meetings before our pond project came along. There was also several points made by one particular guy that the natural flow of water would be disrupted by this. I don't know...i personally think that whoever built the very first house in that neighborhood disrupted that. But what do I know?

One of the board members said the area we are in was meant to have cottages by the lake, not houses. So we asked why building permits for structures other than cottages were approved then. We did not receive an answer.

One neighbor swore up and down that his yard is being flooded by everyone on our side of the road. One neighbor stated that the sewer line we're tied into was put in illegally and goes right through his property. Supposedly the individual that did it did so without his permission on a day he was not home. And they all felt our pond was going to make the overall water issues worse not better....hence why we need to bring more into to the next meeting. In fact, a few of them laughed when I said we had researched trees that would have a higher usage rate for water and found that weeping willow would be a good choice. So we are planning on putting in at least 4 along with other water loving trees to help with water management in our yard.

We also listened to two people telling the board "It's my lot so I'm going to do [XYZ] and there's nothing you can do about it." Meanwhile, my husband and I are thinking... well, this is our lot and what does any of that have to do with our pond?

In addition, the board wanted to know our plan for mosquito population control. We are less than 1000 feet from a large lake. I'm feeling like that shouldn't even be a topic of discussion. But I don't know, maybe I'm wrong? LoL

In the last 3 days we have been able to address everything except the possibility of an artesian spring. The people were mostly seeking an answer to whether the head pressure would have a risk of flooding everyone. A call to a local well digger is in the to do list for this week.

Maybe we'll win this battle, but wow! What a journey this has become.

We left off on this thread with commentary about the politics, so it only seems right to give an update on these processes we're currently going through.

Last Thursday we attended the Zoning & Planning Committee board meeting at our township. We expected to go in at 7 PM, be told we have to fence in the back yard and be home by 7:30 PM. What a surprise it was when we first were heading home at 9:30 PM with the discussion tabled till the next meeting in July where we need to provide additional info on the volume of water we'll be pumping into the pond from the sump pumps, estimated pond volume, an overflow plan and a plan if we hit an artesian spring when excavating.

Apparently there have been other water related issues in our neighborhood for years that noone felt was necessary to bring up at other meetings before our pond project came along. There was also several points made by one particular guy that the natural flow of water would be disrupted by this. I don't know...i personally think that whoever built the very first house in that neighborhood disrupted that. But what do I know?

One of the board members said the area we are in was meant to have cottages by the lake, not houses. So we asked why building permits for structures other than cottages were approved then. We did not receive an answer.

One neighbor swore up and down that his yard is being flooded by everyone on our side of the road. One neighbor stated that the sewer line we're tied into was put in illegally and goes right through his property. Supposedly the individual that did it did so without his permission on a day he was not home. And they all felt our pond was going to make the overall water issues worse not better....hence why we need to bring more into to the next meeting. In fact, a few of them laughed when I said we had researched trees that would have a higher usage rate for water and found that weeping willow would be a good choice. So we are planning on putting in at least 4 along with other water loving trees to help with water management in our yard.

We also listened to two people telling the board "It's my lot so I'm going to do [XYZ] and there's nothing you can do about it." Meanwhile, my husband and I are thinking... well, this is our lot and what does any of that have to do with our pond?

In addition, the board wanted to know our plan for mosquito population control. We are less than 1000 feet from a large lake. I'm feeling like that shouldn't even be a topic of discussion. But I don't know, maybe I'm wrong? LoL

In the last 3 days we have been able to address everything except the possibility of an artesian spring. The people were mostly seeking an answer to whether the head pressure would have a risk of flooding everyone. A call to a local well digger is in the to do list for this week.

Maybe we'll win this battle, but wow! What a journey this has become.

The mosquito population has notably gone down. I see a mosquito land on the surface of the pond or along the edge but and this is no lie. We could never sit outback atthepatio unless it was to cold For the little buffers . But now We can certainly deal with the few that there are. I having been a builder I have heard the so called complaints from wonderful neighbors. You can tell the artisan well person that the concerns are ludacris as if there was any pressure to the well it would. Now or in the very near futcher would make it's self known if it was that close to the surface. Seems 90 percent of those here did less then 3 feet deep.

 

[poconojoe]

Oh, the bureaucracy!
Sounds like you should have just did what you wanted to do and not say anything. No one would have known you changed or added anything.
You try to do the right thing and look what happens. Overthinking and second guessing by bureaucrats that have nothing better to do.

My wife was asked by a friend to have a garden club group come look at our pond. I said no way, I don't need the wrong person finding some whatever reason to object to whatever!
Maybe I'm just paranoid?

 

[GBBUDD]

Oh, the bureaucracy!
Sounds like you should have just did what you wanted to do and not say anything. No one would have known you changed or added anything.
You try to do the right thing and look what happens. Overthinking and second guessing by bureaucrats that have nothing better to do.

My wife was asked by a friend to have a garden club group come look at our pond. I said no way, I don't need the wrong person finding some whatever reason to object to whatever!
Maybe I'm just paranoid?

'


I always love the committees the president of construction affairs is a retired shoe sales man and his right hand " man"
is telemarketer and part time baker. (NOT SAYING ANYTHING IS WRONG WITH THOSE VOCATIONS) i'm just saying that those in charge in such cases know enough to be dangerous when it comes to construction. And you really wouldn't want them running your personal affairs. But you need to go to them for committee permissions I am with @poconojoe and don't tell them nothing next time around. I'd be willing to guess that the loudest opponent is retired as well.

 

[BeckyK]

Of the 8 of us in the public seats, at least half had to be retired. Of the board present (there were 4) two probably are retired, one for sure isn't. The other was hard to tell, as he didn't say much at all.

And we definitely feel like, we're the ones trying to do this the right way and through the proper channels and are being "punished" for it. But on the flip side, we talked with our nextdoor neighbor yesterday, who didn't go to the meeting. He said he thought it was a no brainer, so that's why he and his wife didn't attend. But he has his own recollection of how things have played out since he's been living there, which is about 10 yrs now, and it is totally different than what a couple of them were saying. So now he's fired up and said he is going to the next one to clear the air. At least we have one family on our side!

 

[poconojoe]

All this bureaucracy is even worse when you live in one of those "communities" with a home owner's association, commonly known as an HOA.
My daughter lives in one of those. She pays a yearly fee ( I think it's $1,000) for a mismanaged, rule for everything community. It's run by members who are there only for their own agenda. The pool is broken down because they waisted $50,000 on the wrong part that can't be returned.
"Certain" privileged members were having a hard time with their kyacks, so they dredged out the vegetation from the lakes which in turn devastated the fish population.
She has one of those "invisible" fences for her dog. She got a ticket for not having the dog on a leash. Etc....etc....
Horrible.

 

[Jhn]

Unfortunately, agree as was said better off keeping the minutiae of exactly what you are doing on the qt, when it comes to dealing with boards and commissions approvals. As you will get opinions from busy bodies and know-it-alls, on what you can or can’t do.

Have to deal with people like this in my line of work constantly, I learned a long time ago only provide them necessary info, as to what we are trying to accomplish on customers properties. Around here there is one individual who is the supposed “expert” on living shorelines/marsh creations when he has never built one in his life and has failed at running a construction business in a related field. Yet he is now the go to guy on these projects, and will tell you how you need a sediment study, wave attenuation study to obtain the proper permits. In reality is just a bunch of b.s. to justify charging $8,000 for permits that should cost less than half to attain.

Long winded way of saying I feel your pain on dealing with these types of things, hopefully you can get it sorted out.

 

[dustboy]

Ugh...NIMBYS...I would never dream of telling anyone what they can do on their own property. Yet I got cussed out on Father’s Day because his newspaper got a little wet due to some of my garden runoff...In the street!

 

[BeckyK]

Wow... glad to know we're not alone, but man I don't wish for anyone to have to go through this. I can understand the purpose boards and committees are suppose to serve, but they don't work wihen the wrong people are in charge.

Before the meeting adjourned, the board asked if they could come to our place and take a look. They thought seeing everything in person may help them get a better grasp on things. We agreed and they are coming Wednesday evening. It rained off and on Friday through the weekend so I hope they bring their rubber boots because it's soaking wet out there in our backyard! Could not be better timing for rainfall. LoL It definitely won't be dry by Wednesday.

 

[GBBUDD]

I lived in {THE CONDO COMPLEX IN THE TOWN} AS MY WIFE OWNED THE CONDO FOR SEVERAL years before we moved in . Well the place was clean but sorely out dates. the fireplace had 2 1/2" colonial molding around the opening and that was the mantel . the cabinets were Formica DArK WALNUT, tacky huge sconces etc etc . so i refaced the cabinets with spanish ceder cabinet faces i made myself in the garage of the condo i would get home at 3 and start the saws up and shut them down by 6 pm so everyone could have dinner in piece i would glue and sand after 6 pm . made a mahogany 5 tier mantel for the fireplace installed hickory hard wood flooring WITHOUT THE DARKS (NO COW LOOK) ANY WAYS THE ASSOCIATION WAS THREATENING TO SUE US FOR RUNNING A BUISNESS OUT OF THE GARAGE . THEY DID EVERYTHING TO STOP US . well they failed and for the year that it took i was always nice when they came knocking . Well i finaly lost it one day and while the president of the association was showing a unit i flipped out on him i mean i started screaming at him for some paint i had been asking for for weeks . ANd low and behold 30 minutes latter the paint was at my door and i never had another problem with them. We sold the unit for 35 k more then any other unit had sold for we had a bidding war for the unit i loved every minute of it. moral of the story they think they have all the power but they still have to follow the law. go through the bi laws know them better then they know them them selves