Lake Mohegan, New York - Mohegan Lake Improvement District

Mohegan Lake Improvement District

An excerpt of the MLID Mission Statement:

The Mohegan Lake Improvement District was established in 1975, by joint action of the Town Boards of Yorktown and Cortlandt. Located in northern Westchester County, New York, the Lake District manages 105-acre (0.42 km2) Lake Mohegan. The lake was formed in the last great ice age, but since 1900, has experienced cultural eutrophication. The lake has become increasingly prone to algae blooms, and local residents used copper sulfate to "manage" the lake for many years. About a mile long, the lake was also used for power boating, sail boating, swimming, fishing and ice skating. Not to mention the benefits of looking at the beautiful water and enjoying the company of hundreds of species of plants and animals.

After their years of hard work, and umpteen chicken barbecues to raise funds, residents realized they needed a more lasting organization to collect money and oversee the lake. They petitioned the Towns of Yorktown and Cortlandt, which swiftly approved the creation of the Mohegan Lake Improvement District under Article 12 of the Town Law of the State of New York.

The Lake District is roughly delineated to include all properties having "lake rights" to this private lake. It's hardly "private," however - with some 1,500 households now comprising the District. Currently the District raises about $48,000 a year in taxes (roughly $30 a household) to manage the lake. The District is managed by a group of volunteers, who meet the second Wednesday each month during much of the year.