Despite currently being a quiet corner of Clevedon, Marine Lake has just officially celebrated its 91st birthday! Why not take a stroll through history and appreciate its colourful journey.
To keep things vibrant, a fourth mural, pictured above, is to be installed at the lake this summer. You can read all about it here, noting the actual timing of installation is understandably unsure right now.
On March 15th, MARLENS’ AGM opened its doors to the lake community and was well attended under the circumstances. Amongst helpful discussions around shared use and maintenance, Trustees expressed thanks to several people and groups for their invaluable support for Clevedon Marine Lake:
Viv, Marlens’ bookkeeper for keeping the finances in great order.
Linda Knott, who is retiring as a Marlens’ Trustee, following 17 years of bringing life to the Marine Lake.
Marlens’ Saturday Cleaning group for a phenomenal job keeping the lake ship shape.
The Community for its enthusiasm and engagement with the lake – without whom it couldn’t survive.
The dredging programme in March was very successful, increasing the lake depth to 3ft around the promenade perimeter. It was the second dig of Marlens’ bi-annual mud clearance programme which began in October 2019.
Six new concrete benches were installed whilst the lake was empty in March. Two are pictured here, overlooking the model boat lake, creating more seating around this amazing space.
North Somerset Council is obtaining a quote from Dyer and Butler to replace the broken, small penstock. It’ll be great to get this fixed during the next drain down, scheduled for October 2020, to ensure the lake empties smoothly in future.
The 14m+ high tides carrying substantial flotsam took their toll on the slipway railing after the lake refill in March, pictured below. Repairs will be undertaken as soon as feasibly possible.
On 30th January, Marlens hosted a User Forum at Clevedon Sailing Club, bringing together lake users to share ideas about how to raise and spend money at the lake in the future. It was a very constructive evening, attended by swimmers, sailors, canoeists, paddleboarders and volunteers. A whole range of fundraising ideas and amenity improvements were discussed, providing invaluable input for a 5-year plan for Clevedon Marine Lake, which Trustees are currently working on.
A number of Marlens’ events are scheduled this year but remain unconfirmed due to uncertainty around future restrictions (Bristol Old Vic tour – 2nd April; Lake Day – 9th May; Arnos Vale morbid curiosity tour – 10th June; Marlens’ Musical Extravaganza – 2nd October; Light up The Lake – 5th December).
We look forward to welcoming life back to the lake this summer, but there will be some changes – for safety’s sake.
A rope will be used to cordon off a safe area for all other lake users during Clevedon Sailing Club sessions. More information can be found
here.
In addition, we plan to fly a red flag during the warm summer months, when the lake is heavily used, to indicate when there is a bacterial water quality issue. Two flags will be displayed, one at either end of the lake, adjacent to the information boards containing an explanatory notice. A red flag means that water quality in the lake is currently poor. Alerts will also be shared on social media and via our BLOG to explain the situation and actions being taken. Information is shared to allow lake users to make an informed decision about entering the water.
If you fancy a punt on Clevedon Marine Lake, with better odds of winning than the National Lottery, you can now sign up to Marlens’ Lottery on-line. Marlens Lottery was launched in August 2015 to create a steady income to help run Clevedon Marine Lake throughout the year, following its renovation.
Lost property is regularly picked up by MARLENS’ volunteers from around the lake and stored in the boathouse. For items left behind, contact 07867 336480.
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