Annual Meeting Held
The Annual Meeting of the LPA was held Saturday, April 27, at the Panorama High School auditorium.
       
       President Ron Morden greeted the crowd of over a hundred memberships represented. Board treasurer John McRoberts gave his report of the financial operations of the Association which shows the LPA to be in good financial condition.
       
       Morden outlined in his report that over the course of the last year, the Vision committees had made some excellent recommendations for future improvements at the Lake. An important note was that the covenants and restrictions that govern the use of property at Lake Panorama expire in 2007. These covenants will need to be revised and renewed before that time. Morden reported that a proposal for renewal would be presented by the board before the next annual meeting. He explained that current income and expense projections show that the Association will have to consider changes toward increasing income in the near future.
       
       General Manager gave his report about activities of the various departments of LPA and the projects they are dealing with this year.
       
       The election results were announced. Ron Frisbie, current board member was elected to a second three-year term with 376 votes. Mike Dunn, Ankeny, was elected to the board with 372 votes.
       Dunn replaces Brian Beverly who had served the two consecutive three-year terms allowed by the By-Laws. Thanks to Brian Beverly for his valuable service these past 6 years.
       

Dredging in Upper Basin Continues
The HORIZON dredge is continuing to remove silt in the far upper basin of the lake. The 850 horsepower suction dredge is pumping the silt and water into the CIPCO silt basin where the silt settles out and the water runs back into the lake.
       
       The dredge pumps 120 hours a week with a crew of six operators and supervisor Mike Monthei. There are three two-man shifts per day. Each shift has an operator for the dredge controls and a swing man to get fuel, monitor dredge systems, move markers, clean and fix equipment on board, and clean out materials that get caught in the dredge cutter head. Dredge employees also spend a great deal of time removing logs and branches that are caught in the silt before the area is dredged.

Lighting Concerns Addressed
Concerns about security lighting at some lake homes have been discussed recently at the Building Code Committee meetings. The Committee recommended to the LPA Board that at present, complaints about lighting bothering neighbors should be investigated and negotiated with the light owner. Simple modifications of orientation or shades may solve most problems. Lighting causing problems for neighbors may be classified as a nuisance if a resolution can not be obtained. This is according to the governing documents of the Association. Nuisance items can result in fines.

More Trees Planted at Par 3
A dozen 5-foot White Spruce and three seedless Silver Maples have been planted at the Par 3 as part of the ongoing improvements at the course. Over the past six years landscaping has been done at the new clubhouse and trees have been planted during three different springs.

Burglaries Solved!
A series of burglaries in the west Burchfield area was discovered as members came back to their homes early in April.
       The break-ins mostly consisted of removal of televisions, stereos and a few guns, with some vandalism.
       
       Security Director John Cramer and staff surveyed the area after the first reports and discovered the rest of the break-ins. Guthrie County deputies responded for official reporting.
       
       Thanks to the registration of serial numbers on a couple of televisions by one owner, law enforcement officials discovered the goods in an Ames pawn shop. The perpetrators were young men from the Boone area. All property was recovered and returned to owners. The two criminals will be reimbursing the owners for damages and face charges in adult court. The young men had some lake connections.
       
       This is a good reminder that registering serial numbers does help to solve and prevent crimes. Contact Security Supervisor John Cramers for tips on this valuable program. Members are also reminded that Security offers house check services for a fee in the winter time which can help to deter crime.
       

LPA Departments Look at Projects
Every year has projects planned for various LPA departments. Here are just some of the projects for this year and projects completed since last fall:
        At Shady Beach a retaining wall will be straightened and repaired.
        Boulder Beach has some new tile lines to help keep standing water at a minimum on the upper levels.
        At Sunset Beach, a long neglected rock jetty was re-built.
        The maintenance department will be repairing potholes, soft spots and repairing problem areas on all the streets at the lake and will prepare for 15 miles of seal-coating to be completed sometime this summer.
        Many culverts have been damaged and are partially plugged. The maintenance crews will be repairing around 20 this year. By year end another ˝ mile of ditches will be re-graded and seeded.
        Additional road signs are being placed along the streets of the lake this spring to help safety and comply with standardized traffic sign regulations.
        A portion of Canfield Drive, on the east side of the lake, has been graded and rocked in response to two new homes being completed.
        The water department will be installing half a dozen new fire hydrants to adequately serve the growing number of homes around the lake.
        The LPA water plant has a new aerator installed, which helps remove unwanted gasses from the raw water before it is processed. The water plant also has a higher capacity pump to help fill the tower faster. In addition the chlorine room, which is where the chlorination equipment and supplies are kept, will be remodeled.
        The Par 3 will have some additional irrigation lines run to newly renovated tees.
        Some additional tee work is planned.
        The dredging department will continue to operate in the far upper basin of the lake with a goal of taking out an additional million cubic yards of silt.
        The LPA web page will have some added features. A street address map will be available on the page by summer.
       

Sewer Rates Rise for Members on Panora System
LPA members with sewer service on the east side of the main basin will be subject to new sewer rates as established by the LPA board of directors.
       
        There are 46 users affected by the rate hike. Part of the hike is due to increased rates for the City of Panora, which receives the sewage from this area. Part of the hike is to pay for a new sewage pumping station that must be built to pump the sewage into the City’s system.
       
        The new rate will be a $70 per quarter fee plus $5.00 per thousand gallons of water used.
        The fee was established at that rate to pay the higher Panora fees, to pay off the pump station over a 10-year period, and to allow an amount for annual maintenance.
       
        The South Panorama Sanitary District serves people in the Christmas Tree Point area and was formed as a county government action. That district is also raising rates for residents in the district due to Panora’s rate increases.