SNOHOMISH — A dock on Blackmans Lake popular with local anglers will be shut down at least until the end of June.
City workers closed the south dock at Hill Park last week after they found support beams under the dock had rotted.
“The whole dock was falling about 8 or 9 inches when you stepped on the edge,” said Mike Johnson, city parks supervisor.
A fishing derby planned at Hill Park today will continue as scheduled. Organizers of the derby plan to use another floating dock at Hill Park and have anglers cast from the shore and boats, he said.
Thursday, red “danger” tape crisscrossed the entrance to the dock. Boards were missing from the first section of the dock.
David Pierce of Mill Creek relaxed on a picnic bench near the broken dock with a line cast into the lake. He enjoys fishing at Blackmans, a lake he said attracts serious anglers. “I think it’s a darn shame for the kids fishing in the derby,” he said. “Having this inoperable right now is unconscionable.”
Volunteers from the Snohomish Sportsmen’s Club built the original section of the dock nearly 30 years ago. Some of those same volunteers are ready to chip in their time and money again to fix the dock.
The Sportsmen’s Club is donating $1,000 and members are eager to get the dock operational as soon as possible, said Bob Heirman, longtime secretary-treasurer for the club.
He described Blackmans Lake as the finest lowland lake in the area for fishing. His club spends $5,000 annually to stock the lake with triploid trout.
“The dock is heavily used, especially in the summertime,” he said.
It’s one of the rare fishing docks in the region that’s wheelchair accessible. He regularly brings groups of seniors from local retirement homes to the lake to fish.
The shutdown couldn’t have come for a worse time for fishermen or the parks department.
“The timing is awful,” Johnson said. “It’s right in the middle of the season and we are short about 60 percent of our staff.”
Johnson’s staff has been reduced from nine employees to three and his department, like the rest of the city, is strapped for cash. The city plans to chip in some money to help but they’re accepting offers of cash and help.
Volunteers would like to begin fixing the dock immediately, but the city must have the dock plans approved by the city’s building department as well make other allowances for safety, Johnson said.
The city hopes to have the dock fixed by the middle of July, although it could happen sooner, Johnson said.
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