Kennisis Lake Plan Documents
The following Lake Plan documents are available for download:
- Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Plan, Sept. 2007 (full version, 1.7MB)
- Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Plan, Summary Sept 2007 (summary, 0.8MB)
- Survey Spring 2005 (0.5MB)
Since these documents are now somewhat dated the email addresses contained therein may no longer be valid. Please send any related emails to one of the current Board members listed on the Contacts page.
How the Kennisis Watershed & Lakes Plan was Developed
In the summer of 2004, the members of the Kennisis Lake Cottage Owners Association (KLCOA) endorsed a proposal from the Lake Steward to form a Steering Committee to develop a Lake Plan. The volunteer Steering Committee engaged the services of French Planning Services Inc. to provide professional consulting assistance. Based on the valuable experience gained by those who have developed lake plans for other regions of Ontario, background data were collected, a number of stakeholder workshops were held and a wide-ranging mail-in survey of issues was conducted.
These inputs formed the basis for the identification of key issues, options and possible solutions. A further round of consultation then allowed the Steering Committee to confirm priorities and to build consensus around a series of recommend actions aimed at ensuring the long-term sustainability of the Kennisis Watershed and Lakes for future generations. These actions encompassconcern for such things as improved water quality, wildlife habitat, recreational opportunities, and appropriate residential and commercial development.
Details of the ‘Residents’ and ‘Commercial’ surveys conducted during the summer of 2005 are included in the Appendices as well as summaries of the 2005 stakeholder and residents workshops, and summaries of additional workshops held during the summer of 2006.
In May of 2007 the Draft Lake Plan document was released. 1,200 copies of the Lake Plan Summary were printed and efforts were made to distribute a copy to every cottage property on the Kennisis Lakes as well as all stakeholders. The summary and complete versions of the Plan were also posted on the KLCOA website (now resident on this web site). Feedback was encouraged by mail, e-mail, on a Facebook website, and at two ‘open houses’ held at the Haliburton Forest. A presentation was made to Municipal Council and discussions held with the municipal planning department. On July 3, Council briefly reviewed the Draft Lake Plan recommendations and advised of their continuing interest in the lake planning process for the Kennisis Lakes.
In August of 2007, as a result of comments received during the consultations, a revised Draft was released on the KLCOA website and a synopsis of changes made to the May 2007 Draft was prepared and provided to those attending an open meeting held in conjunction with the KLCOA Annual General Meeting on September 1, 2007.
At the meeting which was open to members as well as non-members of the KLCOA, the Plan was approved by a majority (73%) of the 130 votes cast.
This approved version has been posted as the Sept 2007 version.