Goals and Objectives
The Engineering Study that will guide restoration efforts at both Baldwin Lake and Tule Pond is critical to formulating an action plan that can be implemented to return the Lake to its proper depth, restore its shoreline and enhance its ecosystem.
A recently completed Sediment Study assessed the current state of the Lake and recommended restoration measures. The Engineering Study is the vital followup to determining how to address accumulated sediments, collapsing shorelines, reduced water depth and a threatened ecosystem. The new study would have the following objectives and goals:
• Enhance water quality and aquatic ecosystem by increasing depth and aeration in Baldwin Lake. Dredging of lake sediment to historic depth could provide over twelve million gallons of water storage capacity. Dredging to 6-8 feet would create the healthy aquatic environment lacking in the current 24 inch basin.
• Stabilize and re-vegetate the shoreline to remediate erosion and enhance wildlife habitat.
• Restore and where necessary reconstruct historic design elements of the Elias J. “Lucky” Baldwin perimeter retaining walls. Baldwin Lake is a listed National Register of Historic Places support feature for Baldwin’s Queen Anne Cottage and matching Coach Barn.
• Improve Lake inflows from current sources (i.e. Tule Pond) and identify additional sources of inflow and aeration (i.e. outflow from nearby City of Arcadia Colorado Well).
• Enhance community value of Baldwin Lake as a key educational, scenic, wildlife and historic resource currently serving over 350,000 visitors annually, including 15,000 school children.
In 2015, engineering firm, Tetra Tech, completed a Sediment Investigation on Baldwin Lake. Please view the digital presentation which provides the results of the sediment investigation, preliminary concepts for the Arboretum, potential funding programs and example projects.
The next step and goal is to acquire funding for a full engineering study.
