Jones Lake
City heeds weed woes
By Elizabeth Billips Associate Editor

Residents hope the $7,000 investment will help control weeds in the lake.

Jones Lake will finally get some weed relief.

The City of Waynesboro will contribute $3,000 of the $7,000 needed to get the coontails and filamentous algae under control. The difference will come from property owners living around the lake.

"I don't know if you've seen the lake lately, but it almost looks like you could walk across it," City Administrator Jerry Coalson told city council Monday night before their unanimous vote.

Property owners say Coalson's comment is no exaggeration. Residents on Lake Bluff Drive say some areas are so shallow and weed- choked, dogs are actually using them to cross back and forth from the Dogwood Drive neighborhood.

While responsibility for the lake isn't clear-cut, city attorney Chris Dube says the City of Waynesboro is among the owners.

In the 1950s, the Jones family donated the lake to the now defunct Community Betterment Council - a loosely organized group consisting of the City of Waynesboro and various clubs and organizations which are no longer active. "We may actually be the only one left," Dube said.

Despite the lake's decline, public use hasn't waned.

Many lakeside residents say they'll gladly make private donations toward a healthier lake but contend that weed control is a small part of the solution.

They say many lakefront lots have turned to swamp-front lots and that dredging is the ultimate answer.

"It used to be a wet weather pond, and that's what it's turning back into," said gas supervisor Mikell Small, who lives near the lake.

While city council made no commitment beyond the $3,000, Mayor Jesse Stone said community leaders need to put some serious thought into the future of Jones Lake, especially considering its location along the county seat's main entranceway from the south.

"The city and county ought to look at it as an asset and try to come up with a plan for its future," he said.