Published: Thursday, April 1, 2010

Changes at North Gissberg put on hold

By Wayne Kruse
Special to The Herald

Snohomish County Parks and Recreation had all but decided that radio-controlled model boats would trump young anglers, and that the agency would close the north lake at Gissberg Twin Lakes County Park to all fishing for a substantial percentage of upcoming summer weekends in favor of model boaters.

The north lake, after significant effort by members of local fishing clubs, was designated a “juveniles-only” fishery some three years ago in an agreement between the Snohomish County Parks Board and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

North Gissberg has become arguably the most popular youth fishing lake in the county. The lake has been stocked with several species of gamefish in the past, both by the state and by at least two fishing clubs, and is “child friendly,” with uncluttered fishing availability, room to run, and toilet facilities on site. It's also one of the few fishing lakes in the county relatively accessible to wheelchair-bound anglers.

The folks at Parks and Rec thought they had contacted all the lake's major user groups, deputy director Hal Gausman said, so they made the decision, worked up an RC racing schedule and posted it on the Web. They apparently also notified their employees at the park, and that's how Steve Sande got the word.

Sande took his grandson fishing at North Gissberg on Saturday, where the boy caught a 12-inch rainbow and where they learned from a park ranger (after a high-five for the fish) about the new summer schedule. North Gissberg would have been RC boat water for 22 Saturdays/Sundays between April 10 and the end of September, according to the Parks and Rec 2010 special events schedule on the Web.

“To me this was an outrage,” said Sande, a member of Puget Sound Anglers. “The lake would have basically been unusable by the kids. I have been taking my grandson there since he was barely able to walk and now he's turning 8. He learned to fish there and every time we go, we see families with little kids fishing and enjoying the sanctuary of that lake. I had to make my feelings known about this.”

He did, and so did other fishing club members and state regional fish program manager Annette Hoffman at the Mill Creek office. Along with (ahem!) a local newspaper columnist.

It took a while, but eventually we heard back. Gausman said: “We thought we'd been in touch with everyone on this, but we apparently missed the fishing folks. So until we can secure input from all users, we're holding any changes in lake management in abeyance. We don't want to alienate anyone.”

Gausman said he's soliciting comments. Call him at 360-805-6729 or e-mail him at hal.gausman@snoco.org.

He also said there would be improved signage at the lake, listing contacts and Web sites, and that the department also plans to solicit information from fishing clubs and local tackle shops.


I've taken my grandkids there over the years and it is a great place for kids to fish in juvenile only lake.
Please submit imput if interested.

Gausman said: “We thought we'd been in touch with everyone on this, but we apparently missed the fishing folks.




WTF???

I am the person who blew the whistle on this issue and am mentioned in the article in the Herald. I am a member of the SnoKing Chapter of Puget Sound Anglers and have been very active in kid's fishing events and special needs kid's and adult fishing activities. I have helped many children learn to appreciate fishing and have fought for many years for quality sports fishing. With that said I would ask that reader's of this take a minute to respond to the Snohomish County Parks Department in opposition to their decision to close a lake that has been designated at youth fishing only so model hydroplanes can race there. The hydros have been allowed to race on the South Gissberg lake in the past but they wanted to move to the North lake which is set up as a kid's only fishing lake so they can set speed records because that lake is bigger. Take a few minutes to help the kids.

Below is an example of a letter . You can email your comments to Hal Gausman at Snohomish County Parks at: Hal.Gausman@snoco.org




Dear ________________

April 2, 2010

It has come to my attention that the Snohomish County Parks Department made a recent decision to close the North Gissberg Park to fishing so model hydroplane racing can take place there instead. I went to the Parks Dept web site and found this statement:

“Snohomish County Parks has authorized the following Radio Controlled Boat Races on the North Lake for 2010 from 8:00am–5:00pm. All fishing and water activity on the North Lake is closed during scheduled racing.”

The Parks Department web site has a schedule of the hydroplane races on the North Gissberg lake that shows over 20 dates including most weekends in April and May.

The North Gissberg Lake has been set up as a sanctuary for families to take there kids fishing . The lake is designated for youth fishing only. The model hydroplanes have been allowed to race on the South lake in the past while the youth only North Lake has been left alone. The Washington State Department of Fish and Wildlife stocks the lake with fish as do sporting groups so kids can have a rewarding fishing experience.

I strongly object to the Snohomish County Parks Department’s judgement in proposing to move the model hydroplane racers to the North lake and in the process bar the kids from fishing there for many of the weekends in 2010. I think these noisy model hydroplanes are totally out of place in any park like Twin Lakes and I am certainly strongly opposed to disenfranchising the kids to provide a venue for these races.

I understand you are reconsidering your initial decision and that you are going to keep the hydros on the South lake. I trust that you will follow through and do the right thing for the kids.

Sincerely

______________________________
please include your address

Kids our the future of Our sport, without them, who'll take our old fat arses fishing in 20 yrs?


Thanks Grizz1...e-mail going out today.

When the North Gissberg lake was designated "youth only" fishing a few years ago the Parks Dept promised that the hydros would stay on the South lake and never be allowed on the North lake. There are some new people at Parks now who seem to be going back on that promise and seem to be unsympathetic to allowing kids to fish. Please let them know how you feel about the use of our parks and the sanctuary of this lake set aside for kids...This is one of only three in Snohomish County and of all the lakes and other bodies of water available to the toy hydro guys why disenfranchise the kids?

Here are the contacts for the Parks Dept officials:

Park Administration (I have noted the three main contacts)

Administration: 425-388-6600, parks.department@snoco.org

Akerlund, Kay: 425-388-6603, kakerlund@snoco.org

Allen, Marcie: 425-388-6611, marcie.allen@snoco.org

Bailey, Dianne: 425-388-6622, dianne.bailey@snoco.org

Bosanko, Russ: 425-388-6602, russ.bosanko@snoco.org (the person I spoke with)

Gausman, Hal: 360-805-6729, hal.gausman@snoco.org (deputy director)

Kennedy, Margaret: 425-388-6612, margaret.kennedy@snoco.org

Kramer, Kristi: 425-388-6619, kristi.kramer@snoco.org

Krandel, Marc: 425-388-6621, krandel@snoco.org

Leonard, Bob: 425-388-6606, bob.leonard@snoco.org

Mueller, Chris: 425-388-6620, chris.mueller@snoco.org

Murdoch, Tom: 425-388-6619, murdoch@snoco.org

Patton, Rich: 425-388-6609, rich.patton@snoco.org

Swan, Sharon: 425-388-6616, sharon.swan@snoco.org

Teigen, Tom: 425-388-6617, tom.teigen@snoco.org (director)

Trofimczuk, Tony: 425-388-6604, tony.trofimczuk@snoco.org

Warner, Jessica: 425-388-6600, jwarner@snoco.org

Yap, James: 425-388-6610, jyap@snoco.org

Here are the contacts for the Snohomish County Parks Dept Advisory board members. I have spoken to the chair and she said they KNOW NOTHING about the move to put hydros on the kids lake. Contact them with your support for keeping that lake for kids fishing and not for hydros

Your Parks Advisory Board

At-Large Representatives:

Debbie Copple, Sultan, Debbie@skyvalleychamber.net

North County Position open

Charlene Rawson, Everett, charlene.rawson@gmail.com

Darshan Rauniyar, Bothell, drauniyar@yahoo.com

Melissa Marzolf, Snohomish, melissa.marzolf@gmail.com

Debbie Carlson-Gould, Bothell, SparkleyOne@aol.com

Council District Representatives:

District 1: Tom King, Marysville, tking@ci.marysville.wa.us

District 2: Ed Olson, Chairman, Everett, ed.olson@pacificgarages.com

District 3: John Briney, Edmonds, jsbriney@juno.com

District 4: Bill Malowney, Snohomish, wamalowney@verizon.net

Some history:

Gissberg Lakes

Jul 07 2009

by Robert Graef

A cooling dip in a lake is a very good thing in July or August. The state and county provide opportunities at waterfront parks where families enjoy paddling and picnicking, sometimes for a slight charge, sometimes free. It is at lakeside outings that little ones soak up indelible memories of water more wild and natural than in a bathtub. It may amount to more splashing and dog-paddling than swimming but that’s where swimming starts. Maybe the water’s not crystalline and sometimes smells a bit fishy but that just adds to the wonder of it all. Like the labels on some trendy beverages say, 100 percent natural and unfiltered.

Gissberg Twin Lakes, a.k.a. Gissberg Ponds or Square Lakes is a rarity. One can walk all the way around without crossing private property. Public access all the way. The broad grassy path down the north side is shaded by alders that meet overhead like sabers at a military wedding. Now and then one spots a downed tree bearing the chisel-tooth marks of a pesky beaver.

Freeway din at the parking lot is frankly awful. But a well-placed berm effectively separates the shoreline from the traffic’s roar. A few steps over the hump and toward the water it remains an earful but all one has to do is crouch to reduce the volume. I-5’s din is reduced to a whisper at water’s edge.

Gissberg Lakes is truly a people’s park. While rich-and-famous wannabes max-out credit cards to roast for a week under Caribbean sun, Gissberg Lakes’ quiet families ponder the beauty of dragonflies as disinterested trout and bass nudge their lures. Lots of fishing goes on along the shores and just enough catching to keep people coming back.

Judging from contented children and snoozing parents, Gissberg Lakes has a capacity for soothing jangled nerves. If peace is what the park’s visitors look for, most won’t be disappointed. Aside from delighted squeals from waist-deep water fights, few voices are raised. An unspoken rule seems to keep boom-boxes at bay. It all adds to laid-back luxury that money can’t buy. Think of it as re-creation as opposed to wreckreation.

To be fully prepared for an outing at the lakes, bring folding chairs, a cooler, snacks, bait, rod-holder and rod. Maybe add a blanket or a portable barbecue and you’re set for a delightfully slow day — after driving maybe five or ten miles to get there. Gissberg Lakes’ proximity is a good fit for families feeling the pinch of today’s economic vise. Their seriously road-weary cars that might not survive big vacation trips share the lot with newer shinier models.

When the thermometer tops eighty, children launch an amazing variety of blow-up rafts. Canoes and the occasional mini-sailboat trace laps around one lake but need to be dragged through the shallow channel that connects to the other.

The lakes are the result of a happy accident. When the DOT was building the freeway link north of Marysville it had marshland to contend with. Fill was needed to elevate the roadbed so the road-builders mined for nearby gravel wherever it was available. Gissberg Lakes was a result of those gravel-mines.

The lakes are bounded on the east by I-5. Concrete walls of big-box stores at Lakewood Crossing rise to the north while they are bordered by placid agricultural to the south and west. The two lakes take up 25 of the park’s 44 acres. The north lake is reserved for juvenile anglers under the age of 15, a restriction that appears to be popularly ignored. One has a maximum depth of 24 feet, the other measures 13 feet deep.

No stream feeds the lakes nor do they have an outlet. One source lists them as spring-fed but much of the water moving in and out comes from a slow flow of ground water oozing through the local aquifer. Dig a hole anywhere in the region and you’ll hit water at the surface level of Gissberg Lakes. Since the road builders required the kind of high-grade sand and gravel that poses no barrier to water flow, it figures that ground water thereabouts is free to drift through, perpetually renewing the lakes.

The lakes were named for Bill Gissberg, or more formally, State Senator William A. Gissberg. Bill grew up in Everett’s Riverside District and played championship basketball at Everett High before attending the University of Oregon and the UW on athletic scholarships. He earned a law degree at the UW and practiced law in Marysville and Everett. He served as a landing craft commander in the Pacific during WWII where he participated in the invasions of Okinawa and Lingayen Gulf in the Philippines. Throughout 20 years in the state senate, Gissberg developed a reputation for integrity and hard-nosed independence that caused one friend to describe him as a oner among loners.

When he wasn’t lawyering or legislating, Gissberg was fishing. An outdoorsman and environmentalist, he lived to see the lakes named for him and he surely felt deep satisfaction knowing that children would hook their first fish in lakes bearing his name. At the time when party officials were grooming him for national politics they took him to Washington D.C. to meet the movers and shakers. But when Gissberg took one look at the polluted and littered waters of the Potomac and considered the futility of wetting a line there, he said, no thanks, and returned home to continue representing the 39th District in Olympia.

Gissberg Lakes — a great place for a casual outing. It helps my appreciation of them to know that they were named for a man who deserved the recognition

http://stubbersmedia.com/nwshc/directions.html

Here is a hydro web site to see what it looked like last year

I wrote a email, my son is going to be fishing it more this year.

Appreciate it Big Jim....my grandson is a fishing fanatic now at age 7 and calls Gissberg his "special lake"

I sent an email yesterday when this was first posted.

Grizz,

I will be sending out an email to all listed parties letting them know how our members feel about this also.
Thanks for bringing this to our attention, makes you wonder who really is at the helm at times.

Dave Montoya CCA NSC President

Grizz,

Have you checked into the "Set Up" of the Lake for Kids Fishing Only, were any Robertson/Pitman ACT funds used in that endeavor??? It is somewhat "Routine & Normal" for goobermint types to apply for that "Free Money" and then forget the Restrictions that come with it. If there was, then that Dumbass bunch of County Park Folks may have to (Gasp, Heaven Forbid) either Refund the monies or swallow hard and tell everybody who wants a piece of the Lake Action to Kiss Off.

Thats nice. Thank you.

Took me a little to find it but folks might find the following interesting -

http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/regs/2004ces.pdf

This a summary of 2004 -05 regulation porposals that created the North
Gissberg juvenile water and includes summary of testimony. One of the 3 supporting the proposed change ws the Director of Snohomish County Parks; further they would post signs.

It is proposal #66 which if I recall correctly was submitted by the Everett Steelheaders and maybe the Snohomish County sportsmen Club.

Tight lines
Curt

Smalma,
Thanks,I'll follow up with current director of Sno.Co.parks Monday to see if still same person.

The person I'm corresponding with since sending out emails to all people on Grizz1 Sno.Co.Parks Dept.list has stated:

"Having been in contact with WA Fish and Wildlife Region 4 and their enforcement officers and various other clubs which supports youth fishing during the initial process to have model boat racing on the North Pond, we had yet to come across any ordinance, code or law which prohibits other use of the North Pond by those over the age of 14. i.e. swimming, boating, wading, paddling, model boat, ice skating, etc

Currently, the only restriction(s) we have received confirmation from WA Fish and Wildlife regarding use of the North Pond is that those fishing on the North Pond must be 14 years of age and under"

Grizz1,
Another PM sent to you, we have been invited to a stakeholder and representative meeting.

JohnQ,
I'm trying to use your angle but have come up empty so far. Should have better chance during work week I hope.

Thanks for input by all,

LL

I just received this from SCPD

"Thank you for your comments and concern for youth fishing. We have told the radio controlled motor boat group that they can not use the juvenile only lake. We are also examining how we missed some of you in this process. I am hoping from the interest that this story has created we can work together to identify ways to improve the lakes for everyones recreational enjoyment".

I also talked on the phone and he said due to many e-mails and phone calls since this story was written is the reason behind this decision at this time.

Thank you to all that contributed in the comment process and Grizz1 and Wayne Kruse who brought this to light.

+100


Fishy