Today in
The Lakes
,
LCA President's Report
Mike Sotak
January 2025
The last couple of months had multiple events for the neighborhood with the lighted boat parade, light up the lakes contest, and polar plunge just to name a few. After over 4 years living in the Lakes, I am still in awe with how much fun we always have within the community. I want to give a huge thanks to everyone involved in setting up and participating in these stellar events. I really enjoyed seeing the festive streets light up this past holiday season.
Water under the bridge! Fingers crossed, if the last bit of work is completed without issue, we will have the rapids pumps turned back on by the end of January. We encountered several hurdles getting this project completed, but earlier this month the City did provide final acceptance for the structural and electrical repairs for the pump house project. SRP energized the new electrical service providing power back to the pumps on 1/17/25. The last bit of work to complete is for Pump Man to reinstall the re-built pumps and that should be completed by next week.
Please mark your calendars for February 11, 2025 at 8pm for the LCA Annual Homeowner’s meeting. January is my last full month as the LCA board president. I want to extend my deepest gratitude to the community for your support over the last year. I have been truly humbled by this experience, the wisdom of those around me, and the deep-seeded love within this community. We love where we live and every single one of us has played a part in keeping this neighborhood thriving and sought after.
All the above being said, and as I step down from the board of directors, it is my hope to stay involved in this community. I plan to stay here for many years to come, watching my children play and laugh in the street with continued new friendships our family has gained over the years. As cliché as it sounds, I have personally found the “it takes a village” mentality not only exists, but thrives in our community, and for that I am forever thankful. I would like to sign off with this. Always remember the Golden Rule and treat others as you would like to be treated.
Cheers and thank you all again for your continued support, patience, and understanding. It has been a pleasure working with and getting to know all of you.
Mike Sotak, President
Community Manager's Report
Christine Baldanza
January 2025
Happy New Year to the Lakes Community. I hope the new year ahead brings good things to all.
I would like to update everyone on our Pump Station Vault Project. This project has taken longer than expected, but we are very close to having our beautiful Rapids flowing again. I would like to go over the timeline of this complicated project.
In mid-June Truesdale Corporation started their demo and repair of our underground Pump Vault. They also repaired and re-formed portions of the bridge and surrounding concrete structures. Truesdale Corporation did a fantastic job with the repair and rebuilding of our Pump Station. They were on time, and we stayed within the allocated budget. The next step was to install all new underground electrical to the Pump Station since the old electrical had decayed and was not in any kind of conduit.
Unfortunately for the Pump Station Project, when it was time to start on the electrical portion of the project, the plan was to cut across the road to bring our wires from the electrical panel to the underground pump. That is when the City of Tempe started the asphalt street paving in The Lakes.
So, we were forced to halt our project until the road resurfacing was completed. Once it was completed, we had to figure out a different method to get our electrical wires under Lakeshore without disturbing the newly poured asphalt.
The city then required a new plan and some extra permitting to bore underground for the new electrical wiring. As we all know, permitting can take time, but with great persistence, we were able to bore successfully underground and now all of our new wiring is now in place.
As of this writing, we have approval from the City of Tempe to get SRP to power up the electricity needed to run the Rapids pumps and within the next two weeks, our pumps will be installed in the underground Pump Station and then we will turn them on and have our Rapids flowing again.
Once the electricity is powered up, we will have our sprinklers and lights working again on the Rapids greenbelt. We’re not sure if we can overseed this area for rye grass this late in the season, but we certainly will try.
I appreciate everyone’s patience while we maneuvered through some unexpected challenges, but the end result will be well worth it.
I would like to update you on some of the price changes to our room and park rentals at the Beach and Tennis Club. These are not big changes, but a necessity to keep up with costs. The price to rent the following areas are:
- Large Park: $50/hour
- Kids Park: $40 for 4 hours
- Multi-Purpose Room: $75/hour
- Adult Lounge: $125/hour
This still includes tables and chairs, set up and take down, and garbage removal.
Also, Tenant Registration is now $30. All homes with renters need to register their tenants with the HOA office.
A friendly reminder that if you haven’t purchased your 2025 boat stickers, please come down to the Clubhouse and register all your watercraft. Fishing licenses are also available. You only need one license per household, but the homeowner must be present with the fishing license when fishing with guests.
There are lots of events coming up this spring. Read your Lakes Log, check the website, thelakesoftempe.com, and follow along on the Lakes Facebook page, The Lakes Life.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me; 480-838-1023.
Christine
Friendly Reminders
- Please remember to travel the waterways as you would drive a car. Stay on the right side of all channels and make sure you have working boat lights: green on your port side (your left), red on your starboard (your right) and a white light at the stern. Please follow basic boating rules to keep our lake safe.
- Please be mindful of the no-burn days that Maricopa County Air Quality Department issues. This means no outdoor fire pits and no fireplace fires. Please check Maricopa County Air Quality Department for up-to-date no-burn information.
- When you walk your dog, please be courteous and pick up after your dog. The Lakes has many doggy stations with bags, please use them.
- Please be respectful of your Lakes neighbors and don't throw garbage over walls or into the lake.
- Homeowners, please remind your landscapers not to throw bush and tree trimmings, leaves or grass clippings into the lake.
- Don't forget, starting in March you need to prep your lawn for the warm growing season. Lawns in the Lakes must be green and lush from April through September.
- The city bulk trash and green pickups are scheduled for the second Monday of every other month. Please put out your bulk trash items and yard trimmings no earlier than the Thursday before the Monday pickups. The dates are included on the Lakes Calendar.
Christine
The Lakes Wine & Cheese Happy Hour is a great way to kick off the spring season! Be sure to join us at 6 PM on Friday, February 7 at the Beach and Tennis Club.
