The public boat launch at Lakeside Park will open for the season on Saturday, April 26, and this year the village will institute a new inspection policy for boats entering and exiting Cazenovia Lake as a way to improve the fight against invasive species.

“Every boat and trailer will be inspected on arrival so no animal or plant matter gets into our lake. If a boat is contaminated [and cannot be cleaned] it will be refused access … and there will be the same inspection on outbound boats,” said Trustee and Commissioner of Parks Fritz Koennecke. The boat entry inspection was a policy done last year for the public boat launch, but the outbound inspection will be new this year. Boats exiting the lake that have plant or animal matter on them will be hosed off.

“Basically, we just want to leave our stuff in our lake and not infect anybody else,” he said.

The inspections — as well as courtesy boat safety checks — will be completed by village-hired lake stewards, who were also at the launch last year.

Since the village owns the boat launch but the trustees want to make it available for use by town residents as well, recently the village and town boards both approved an inter-municipal agreement on use of the launch – the village board on April 2 and the town board on April 14. Under the agreement, the town will pay the village $10,000 for town resident usage; the funds will be used by the village to offset the maintenance and upkeep costs of the launch, and enforcement of applicable regulations pertaining to the launch. This s the same agreement approved by both municipal boards last year.

The boat launch is available to any permit holders provided a parking space is available for non-Cazenovia residents. Permits are available at the Cazenovia Village Office, 90 Albany St. from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Use of the boat launch by unauthorized person(s) will result in a fine of up to $250.

The village and town board also have approved an inter-municipal agreement to support the lake boat patrol program, with the village police supplying the law enforcement and management work and the town paying $3,000 for operating costs. This is the same agreement as was established in 2013.

The lake patrol was formerly run by the Madison County Sheriff’s Office, but in 2012 the department had such a labor shortage that patrols were severely curtailed. So in 2013, the village, town, Cazenovia Lake Association and Willow Bank Yacht Club worked together to create the current patrol program.

In addition to the village and town contributions to the program operations in 2013, the CLA provided $5,000 and the boat and all its accoutrements and the Willow Bank Yacht Club agreed to dock the boat in one of its slips.

“I and my officers think this is a great tool to have,” said Cazenovia Police Chief Michael Hayes. “Thanks to the town, the village and the lake association for the cooperative effort — it’s a great example of government and private agencies working together to add safety and education to the lake, and at the same time it expands the police department’s experience and knowledge base. It’s a win-win all around.”

Lake patrols are scheduled to begin May 15, weather permitting.

Jason Emerson is editor of the Cazenovia Republican. He can be reached at [email protected].