The daily morning journal and courier., 1901-11-08
FOR AN ARTIFICIAL LAKE
4 REPORT MADE LAST NIGHT TO
 TO THE SPECIAL COMMISSION

, By n Committee Appointed to Consider
 the Suggestion for Tide Water Lake at Foot of East Rock-A Fresh Wntes z Lake Recommended advantages of a Tide Water Lake Pointed Out City Engineer and Henry IT. Blake
 Requested to Prepare Plans.
 At the meeting of the special commis-
 the base of East Rock held last night a
 most interesting report was submitted
 by a sub committee appointed to con-
 fer with the state board of health to
 ascertain whether the water which
 flows into Mill river from the harbor Is
 so polluted as to be unsuitable for use
 in the proposed lake. This special com
 mittee was composed of Henry T. Blake,
 Dr. J. P. c. Foster and Thomas I. Kin
 ney. MT. Blake presented and read
 the report to the commission last night. The committee communicated with
 in reply a report from that board, ac- companied by report of Professor
 Herbert E. Smith. The committee re-
 ported that while the state board and
 Professor Smith did not explicitly con- demn a tide water lake as unsanitary, they did not recommend it as free from
 sanitary objections, even under present
 conditions, and their report suggested the probability that, as the amount of
 sewage matter discharged into the har- | bor increases with the future growth of the city, those objections are likely to | become serious.
 Under these circumstances the com
 mittee felt justified in extending the
 scope of the inquiry referred to them
 for solution and investigated the ques-
 tion whether a fresh-water lake could
 not be maintained In place of creating
 a tide- water lake, which has been here
 tofore assumed to be the only practica-
 ble plan.
 It has often been proposed to con-
 struct the desired lake simply by erect
 ing q dam at Willow street high enough to flood the meadows though the flow | of the stream to suitable depth, say l one or two feet. A report made to the Chamber of Commerce in 1896 by com | mittee of that sbody showed such a | scheme to be impracticable. That com mittee also reported a suggestion that
 the lake, If established, be created by excavation as the only practicable plan, and in this opinion the special commit
 tee of the commission concurs.
 The committee entered into an ex- haustive consideration of the question
 as to whether a fresh water lake, fifty acres In area and five feet in depth, cre- ated by excavation in the meadows at
 the foot of East Rock, could be main- talned from the natural source of sup ply. Tn this connection the calculated annual evaporation for the New Haven district as given by the government au- thorities was considered, the rainfall. leakage of the Whitney dam, the waste water which goes through the water wheels of the New Haven Water com pany and the Winchester Arms com pany, the natural springs and small streamlets which flow into Mill river, between the Whitney dam and Willow street. to offset the loss by evaporation and the losses to the lake by soakage and leakage.
 After considering these matters the committee reports that 1t Is clearly of the opinion that it will be perfectly fea- sible to maintain fresh- water lake, fifty acres in extent and five feet deep, { at the foot of East Rock, even in the | dryest seasons, and that in average sea | sons such a lake would show copious | and continuous outflow. For this req son. if there were no others, they would recommend that fresh-water lake be constructed if any; but as additional reasons they would call attention to the serious objections which exist against a tide-water lake, if designed to be of sn ornamental character and for pop uIar use in boating, bathing and skat- ing. As the proposed lake is desired in mart as substitute for Lake Whitney as popular resort the importance of these objections is the more obvious.
 The objections to a tide water lake formed by generations and not less than five feet deep are, that it would be of importance that the shores of such a lake on every side be prectp- itous in form and that no extent of shallow water or mud flats be possible, but precipitous edges to a lake five feet deep. which is to be the place of popu lar resort. would introduce an element If danger. especially to children; the tide water coming up Mill river is pol Iuted with sewage; the salt or brackish ruality of the water and the daily rise and fall with the tide would prevent it's use for skating purposes; water lilies and other ornamental plants would be precIuded; to provide a lake not less than five feet deep at low water would necessitate considerable increase in the cost Of construction by such a lake he water power of the water company would be liable to be interrupted.
 Tn view Of all these considerations he committee is not onlw convinced 1 hat a frosh water lake in the meadows below East Rock is practicable. but E hey are also of opinion that no other lind of lake should be created there z City Engineer Kelly was present and ,howed a map outlining a plan of the ( ake hich he had prepared. This U 1lan is for a lake with about fifty-two lcres of wdter area with six islands. hiee large ones and three smaller ones. r Ir. Kelly thought hat the excavation t would cost about 20 cents per yard, and s
 l