Liberty Lake Boat Launch Woes Continue One Neighbor’s Peace Is Another Neighbor’s Headache

Planned improvements at Liberty Lake’s public launch would shift the noise and congestion of boaters from one neighboring homeowner to another, those pitching an alternative proposal said during a hearing Monday.

But state officials say their plan is best for users who don’t live at the lake. Any alternative would require dredging the lake, adding to the cost and regulatory headaches of the work, they told the state Shorelines Hearings Board.

“It’s not easy living next to a site like this,” acknowledged assistant attorney general Jay Geck, who represented the Department of Fish and Wildlife at the hearing.

Built on shoreline fill in the 1950s, the existing ramp is poorly designed and in sorry shape, said officials from the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

They want to build a new boat ramp, along with a dock for boaters and another for shore fishermen. The $175,000 plan includes new restrooms, better parking and drainage swells to filter pollution-carrying runoff before it flows into the lake.

The plan calls for moving the boat ramp from the west side of the small lot to the east side.

Stephen Mean, who lives just east of the launch, said the change would bring a parade of boats and personal watercraft to the water off his beach.

Mean and others complained that the launch is the scene of arguments, spiced with loud profanity, on busy weekends. Mean said it draws loud partiers at night.

“I always know when the bars close,” because revelers come to the launch, he said.

A real estate appraiser testified the change would lop at least $56,000 off the value of Mean’s house. It would be a “bonanza” for landowners to the west, who now deal with all the problems Mean fears, said his attorney, Michael Connelly.

Armed with an architect’s plans drawn at Mean’s expense, Connelly proposed moving the boat launch to the center of the property as a way of splitting the problems between both neighbors.

But state officials testified that Mean’s proposal would put shore fishermen shoulder-to-shoulder with people launching boats.

“Anybody who tries to fish will quickly find themselves in a swearing match with boat owners,” said Geck.

Project engineer Ron McIrvin said any plan other than the one he drew for the state would require dredging that would have to be repeated occasionally. He predicted the state could not get permits for the work, and would have trouble disposing of the spoils.

Asked by Connelly why his initial notes on the project suggested dredging, McIrvin said he was “naive” about the cost and complications of the work.

Connelly noted that the lake has seen other dredging, most notably in the 1980s, when silt was scooped from about a third of its bed during a lake restoration project.

“The Department (of Fish and Wildlife) has not asked for a permit for dredging,” he said. “They cannot state categorically that one would not be issued.”

, DataTimes