Is the Mountain Island Lake sandbar getting too dangerous?
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The sandbar at Mountain Island Lake is a happening place. On the weekends, you might see dozens of boats pulled up next to each other, and an adult beverage or two. There’s a volleyball net and a grill permanently embedded in the sand.
“It’s pretty tame,” said Trevor Shipman, a regular boater on the lake. “It’s not Spring Break 2010 out there.”
But there’s apparently a disagreement about whether it’s dangerous.
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Shipman, who lives uptown, describes a narrow and shallow channel near the sandbar where boats regularly whip through at 30 mph. He said he saw a boat narrowly miss a child on a raft just a month ago, and has seen boats buffeted by the wake of boats speeding by.
He has applied for a no wake zone in the area. The Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners will discuss the request at their meeting tonight.
“The question isn’t if an accident will happen, it’s when,” he wrote in his application.
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To be honest, the no wake zone faces tall odds. State and county officials who checked out the scene said there are already danger buoys out there warning of shallow water. In theory, swimmers should be 50 feet away from the boating channel. They say it’s not a designated swimming area and no congestion problems were found.
“That is a tight spot that folks love to enjoy,” said Sam Perkins, the Catawba Riverkeeper. He declined to come down on either side of the issue, but said that safety could become more of a concern if lake levels fall. The current drought has had a big effect on Lake Norman, but Mountain Island Lake has stayed steady.
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“I understand folks want to have a good time. I would say to the boaters: Slow down, be aware, especially if other people are around at the same time.”
Say your piece
Mecklenburg County staff is coming out against the no-wake-zone, choosing to side with the state agencies that determined there didn’t need to be one. The commissioners can go against that recommendation and press for one, though. If you feel strongly, the public hearing is scheduled to start around 6:30 p.m.
Perkins also said that the best way to push for change, if you’re concerned about safety, is to document it in photos or video. That’s the best way to convince the powers-that-be.
Love Mountain Island Lake? The Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation is hosting a clean-up day Sept. 26.
(Photo credits: Mecklenburg County for the header image and the map; Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation for the rest)