CAROL CATT

Carol Catt, former owner of Sweetwater Realty Inc., passed away on December 25th, 2014. Carol began her real estate career doing secretarial work for Howard Prince, developer of Prince's Lakes and Cordry Sweetwater Lakes. Through the years, Carol worked for several entities that platted and sold lots in Cordry Sweetwater Lakes. During the period from 1974 to 1979, Carol operated Sweetwater Lake Inc. under the supervision of the Federal Bankruptcy Court in Indianapolis. In 1979 Carol and husband John made the only bid to buy the realty

building and leftover parcels of land from the bankruptcy court. Carol operated the agency under the name of Sweetwater Lake Realty until January 1st, 2002 when she sold the realty office and business. She is survived by 4 children and numerous grand and great grandchildren. Services are pending

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

NEW CONSTRUCTION

Even though the November weather has been "winter-like," it hasn't kept local contractors from keeping busy on numerous construction projects. There are several dock/deck projects under construction. In addition, there are several homes being constructed to be ready for fun next summer. Pictured is one new home project on Duck Circle being built by Younger Construction Co.

CSCD ELECTIONS

Looks like there will be several candidates running for 2 seats on the CSCD Board of Directors. Incumbent Quinn Heatherington in area #3 is being challenged by Matthew Petersen. In area #7 incumbent Francis Gantner will be running against Jerry Engle. Commendations to all for having the interest to run for office and commit to three years of meetings and work for the good of the community.

MOLES

It's worse than a social disease! MOLES! What little yard I have looks like a freshly plowed field! Hired Rusty's Mole Service to attack. I don't usually recommend workers but this guy is good! Rusty's Mole Servie - 317-431-3446.

OOOPS!

Looks like the school bus missed the road going down Cordry Dip this morning. Probably heavy downpour dimmed visibility. No students on board/no injuries.

FIRST SNOW

WOW! First snow of the season arrived on Sunday, November 16th! I'm not adverse to a little snow and cold but.....just not this early!

RUSHING THE SEASON

I was driving on Centerlake Road last night past Ray Wolfe's home on the corner of Centerlake and Chapel Hill Drive and couldn't believe he's all lit up already! The REMC is going to love him! Then again, it's snowing this afternoon as I post this. Can't believe several of my friends and I went water skiing last Sunday!

NOVEMBER WATER SKIERS

Several water skiers took advantage of the warm weather on Sunday, November 9th. Some had wet suits and some had dry suits. The water conditions were perfect for the skiers Bryan Dougherty, Tony Elmes, Dan Federspill, and Dave Jarrett. Most of us have skied every month except last February when the lake was still frozen over! Pictured is property owner Tony Elmes on the slalom ski.

SNOWIN' AND BLOWIN'

The annual Halloween Hayride/Trick or Treat was cancelled today due to severe weather conditions. Hard to believe there were water skiers on the lakes earlier in the week. It was snowin' and blowin' today! The Trick or Treating was done at the Cordry Sweetwater Fire Department building. Scores of children and their parents strolled from table to table filling up their sacks with candy and treats. Sweetwater Realty staff dressed up and manned one of the tables.

NEW VULTURE HANGOUT

Just finished painting the south water tower at an expense of $159,000 and just look who's hanging out there! The turkey vultures used to congregate at the Sipe's property at the bottom of Church Hill. I'm not sure where their home base is now. They will soon disappear and migrate south.

CSCD MEETING UPDATES

The CSCD October 21st meeting covered several interesting topics: Stacey Wethington was announced/hired as the new Conservancy Manager. A lengthy discussion about boat wakes and wake surfing resulted in a 9 month moratorium for allowing any more rear-engine inboard boats to be allowed on the lakes. Numerous building permits were passed by the board. The white water tower painting (inside and out) has been completed at a cost of $159,750. A second reading of the proposed budget was held. Pictured is Stacey Wethington and office girls Mary and Judy.

HALLOWEEN HAYRIDE FUN

The annual Halloween Hay Ride Trick or Treat event will be held on Halloween Night, Friday, October 31st. The wagons gather and load up at the Church of the Lakes after the church sponsored Glow Party event and they head out to different "stops" around the lakes for trick or treating. Fun event for both children and adults.

HAUNTED TRAIL

The annual CORDRY SWEETWATER FIRE DEPARTMENT HAUNTED TRAIL is coming next weekend on Friday, October 24th and Saturday, October 25th. Usually beginning at dark and continuing to 11:00 PM on both nights. Refreshments and fun on the hayride to the Haunted Trail is a volunteer effort by fire department members and community volunteers.

FALL COLORS

The jury is still out but.....with all the wet August weather, experts are predicting exceptional fall foliage colors to appear. Some of the Maples are just turning "gold" this week.

HIGH WINDS

There were high winds last week as the good September weather was replaced by cooler October days. The pictured portable lift was on floats and tied to a neighbor's dock to make room for dredging in a narrow cove on Sweetwater. The winds got ahold of the top and tilted the lift over. I think/hope no real damage was done to the lift.

NEW FACEBOOK PAGE

For all the facebook fans out there, a new facebook page has appeared. Set up by Josh Hawley, the new page is out there to inform all about activities and information about the Cordry Sweetwater Conservancy District. It's dedicated to professional newsworthy items around the area. Go to.....Cordry-Sweetwater Infrastructure/Maintenance.

NINEVEH HERITAGE FESTIVAL

The annual Nineveh Heritage Festival will be next Friday and Saturday, October 10th and 11th. Some of the festivities begin on Friday afternoon from 3:00 to 9:00 and other activities are on Saturday during the day. Find all the information at www.ninevehfestival.org.

NEW CONSERVANCY EMPLOYEES

A hearty welcome to several new Conservancy employees. New roads/water maintenance employees include Josh Bryant and Anthony Dunn along with Richard Blasdel. A water leak was reported at 3;30 today on Bunting Drive and they along with Josh Hawley (new maintenance supervisor) were on the scene within the hour and well past their advertised quitting time! It's not a glamorous job and we need to tip our hats and give them a good welcome.

FIRE DEPARTMENT OPEN HOUSE

Do stop by and visit the Cordry Sweetwater Fire Department Open House on Saturday, October 4th. It's a great opportunity for the kids to climb on the fire engines and for the adults to meet some of the volunteers who might be saving your house from fire or transporting you in the ambulance to emergency care! Also be aware that the fire station has installed a newer/larger ice machine for everyone's convenience.

ACORN BOMBS

Watch out for the acorns! It looks like a "bumper crop" of acorns. Some years the harvest is not so great. Must have been a great growing year for acorns also. Be careful where you park your car. Acorns falling from up high can inflict a significant dent.

CONSTRUCTION FRENZY

There are three new houses under construction on Sweetwater Lake. Two of the projects are replacing damaged structures and one on Hummingbird Drive is a completely new home. There are also numerous dock construction projects on both lakes.

Pictured is one project replacing a wind damaged home on Sunset Drive.

CSCD MEETING NOTES

Last week's CSCD meeting lasted until 11:00 P.M. Some of the items discussed included Building Permit Rules, Boats With Water Tanks Used For Making Larger Wakes, Dredging Update...dredger is only at half way point of materials dredged and may add number of coves to be dredged, Water Tower Repainting, New Employees....several water/roads workers have been hired so we are "re-staffed," and the Budget....looks like the budget is very similar to 2013 budget. Pictured is Quinn Heatherington and wife Linda out for a cruise on a warm afternoon in their 1957 Chris Craft "Bubba."

BOAT RAMP REPAIR

A representative from Dave O'Mara Inc. came today to check the Cordry boat ramp and do a minor repair to the Sweetwater boat ramp. Several blocks of one of the "mats" came loose and needed re-aligned.

EDINBURG FLOWERS

Edinburg has the best flower displays in the county! (Johnson County) The downtown area has street planters that are beautiful along with hanging baskets on every street light in the downtown main street. Several good restaurants including Mexican, Chinese, and American.

YELLOW JACKETS BEWARE

I've been informed of several yellow jacket incidents in the past 2 weeks. Some people call them ground bees but the correct name is yellow jackets. They burrow in the ground and are vey aggressive. The attaché in numbers when mowers or weed eaters go over the nest. They can sting numerous times per insect. A product call SEVIN is a white powder available at Lowes and other places is pretty affective. Take a trowel full of the white powder at night when they aren't flying and poke down the hole. They will be gone the next day. Some people pour gasoline down the hole at night. Very dangerous.

JOHN CATT

John Catt of Prince's Lakes passed away on Friday, August 29th. John was a local contractor for many decades in the area. He and his wife Carol owned and operated Sweetwater Realty for many years. (Carol survives) Services yet to be announced.

OX ROAST FUN

The Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owner's Ox Roast started out with a rainy Saturday but the skys cleared up to a standing room only crowd. The photography contest drew lots of attention along with the boats from Ted's Aqua Marine and the cars from Ray Skillman Kia. (thanks to Barry Morgan) The Snake Man and the Raptor Man also drew large crowds.

WATER TOWER WORK

Work on painting and updating the South Water Tower has begun behind the fire station.

OX ROAST WEEKEND

Do remember the annual CORDRY SWEETWATER OX ROAST this weekend, August 30th. Bring your checkbooks and renew your Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owner's memberships for $75. Silent auction, food, games, displays, music, crafts, and more. Opens at 11:00 AM and goes into the evening.

SAM EGGERS CORNER

Sam Eggers Park at the corner of Cordry Drive and Hackberry Drive has never looked better. Sam religiously waters and digs in the dirt to beautify this little triangle. Thanks Sam.

DREDGER BARGES

The dredger on Sweetwater Lake appears to be "fine tuning" barges. It appears that they have launched a new smaller barge and are constructing a new "holding tank" for the spoils that they dig up.

WEDDING ON THE BEACH

Saturday, August 2nd, 2014....perfect day for a wedding on Sweetwater Lake Beach.

CSLOA NEWSLETTER

The CSLOA Newsletter just arrived. Don't just throw it on the kitchen counter......read it! Ox Roast, Volunteers Needed, Photo Contest, Silent Auction Items needed, Fire and Ambulance Info, Sheriff Reminders, Library News, Membership Application, and More. Don't delay. Send in your $75 and membership form, plan to attend and help at the Ox Roast.

DREDGING RESUMES

A new set of barges were delivered this week to the Sweetwater launch ramp/dock area. The new dredging combination was seen dredging today in the cove between Chipmunk and Gopher Drives.

FIREWORKS

The annual fireworks show from Sweetwater Lake Beach were "oohed and aahed" from the shore and from the boats on July 12th. Threatening skies during the day cleared for a picture perfect evening for the show. The fireworks presentation is sponsored and paid for by the Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owner's Association at a cost of $4,000. The CSLOA also operates the clubhouse and library buildings at the entrance to the lakes in addition to supporting the Cordry Sweetwater Fire Department.

Be sure to renew your memberships this September at the Ox Roast.

SATURDAY CSCD MEETING

The CSCD decided to hold 3 summer meetings on Saturday mornings in 2014. Today's meeting appeared to me to have "average" attendance for the usual monthly meetings. An "open house" from 10:00 to 12:00 welcomed visitors to walk through the new office/maintenance facility.

DREDGING CONTINUES

Dredging on the end of the cove between Heron Drive and Hummingbird Drive has begun. This private work is being done by SRS Company who did dredging the past 2 years on the lakes.

OPEN HOUSE/CSCD MEETING

Out with the old and in with the new. We all miss the old building but the new building is beautiful and functional. The Cordry Sweetwater Conservancy monthly meeting will be this Saturday, July 12th beginning at 8:30 AM. This is one of 3 Saturday meeting scheduled this summer to possibly attract and increase attendance. Following the meeting will be the official "Open House" to show the public the new building. The Open House is scheduled from 10:00 AM to 12:00 Noon. Here's your opportunity to see and hear the board in action and also tour the new facility.

FIREWORKS-SAUSAGE/PANCAKE BREAKFAST

Next weekend offers 2 important events. The annual fireworks display on Sweetwater will be on Saturday evening. With a house full of company, don't worry about breakfast - just visit the CSLOA Clubhouse for the Sausage/Pancake Breakfast prepared and served by the Fire Department Volunteers. These volunteer projects need to be supported by all of us. We tend to forget about the Fire Department and the EMT Volunteers until there's a need ......like.....a few weeks ago on the beach when emergency care was needed. Help support the local community volunteers.

CORDRY BOAT PARADE

The best ever Cordry Lake Boat Parade was enjoyed by both boaters and residents on shore on July 5th, 2014. Hats off to Natalie Beavers for helping organize this year's event.

SHAKE THE LAKE

The Shake the Lake party on Saturday, June 5th at Sweetwater Lake was a smashing hit. Music by Dave and Rae was enjoyed by all. You could walk across the lake on boats!

ADDITIONAL DREDGING

Additional dredging by a private owner will be occurring between Heron Drive and Hummingbird Drive. The cove below the dam of Deerskin Lake will provide better access to Sweetwater Lake for the owners of Deerskin Lake. Deerskin Lake was created when Howard Prince owed a Mr. Potschmidt for building some of the roads around the lakes. Prince deeded off the land where Deerskin Lake is now located to Mr. Potschmidt for payment of road construction.

ROADSIDE CLEAN UP

Notice the roadside cleanup occurring in different locations around the conservancy? Mother Nature seems to want to take over on some of our roads and park areas. Thanks to Richard Blasdale, a summer employee, for the hard work and efforts.

UNSUNG HEROS

A near drowning incident at Sweetwater Beach makes us all appreciate our EMT-FIRE DEPARTMENT VOLUNTEERS. They were on the scene in just a few minutes after a 17 year old was brought in by fellow swimmers. Next time there's a need for help at fish fries or donations are needed, we all need to step up.

OFFICE PAVING

Final items are being completed at the new CSCD Office/Maintenance Building. Paving and graveling of the parking and approach areas was compeleted this week.

DREDGING HAS BEGUN

Contrary to earlier notifications, the dredging on Sweetwater Lake has begun. One of the first cove areas being worked on is between Falcon and Finch Drives on the West side of Sweetwater.

CORDRY BOAT PARADE

It's a little early but planning ahead always pays off and insures a successful event. The annual Cordry Boat Parade is scheduled for Saturday, July 5th at 8:00 PM.

TRASH TALK!

Take an hour and help out with community trash day on Saturday, May 31st at 8:00 AM. Take a walk along some of our roads and pick up articles of trash. Bring a trash bag and a pair of gloves. Contact Anita Wright at 933-3234 or the CSCD office at 933-2893 for more information. Let's take a little pride and spread some good will. Meet at the clubhouse at 8:00 AM-gloves and bags provided-waters and snacks served at 12:00 noon. Check the website www.cscd-in.org for updates.

NEW CLUBHOUSE CARPETING

The Cordry Sweetwater Lot Owners Clubhouse is getting new carpeting. Over the past year the CSLOA has been updating both the exterior and interior of the clubhouse to make it more attractive for events. Do note that the clubhouse is available for rentals.