But the Lilydale area is not forgotten by a number of nature and fishing-lovers who appreciate both the rustic atmosphere and the proximity to surrounding urban areas. Timm has preached about the popular benefits of a dike over the past four decades to almost anyone who'll listen. The retired glass and metalworker's crusade to redevelop Pickerel Lake as a game-fishing preserve uncontaminated by rough fish and pollution from annual runoff of the nearby Mississippi has carried him from group to group and official to official. Not all have seen the wisdom of his arguments, with critics noting both financial and environmental costs to his diking proposal. Some have not always appreciated Timm's outspoken approach and feistiness.
Levees stop the river from doing what's natural - which is spreading out over the floodplain.
But Timm refuses to be deterred. After surviving prostate cancer and the death of his wife last year after an extended illness, he plans to carry the cause to the grave - and beyond via trust funds built from a lifetime of work and a keen eye for investments. I guess I am out of order most of the time. These people, the have nots that don't have a boat or things and need a place. I'm more for this thing than ever.