Preferred Alternative
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Lakeside Restaurant
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Building new marina
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Map of area
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Lakeside Lodge Expansion EA available for public review
by Dawn Svalberg
May 23, 2004
Lakeside Lodge Resort & Marina, the only commercial resort business located on Fremont Lake, is seeking to expand operations for their resort, lodging, RV campground, marina, dry boat space and support facilities. Since they operate under permit on National Forest land, the Pinedale Ranger District of the Bridger-Teton National Forest has just released an Environmental Assessment (EA) for the Lakeside Lodge Master Development Plan.
The Preferred Alternative would allow the resort to go from a summer-seasonal operation to all year and expand their restaurant and lodging facilities. The EA considers four alternatives along with Lakeside's proposed action. The final decision will be made by Pinedale District Ranger Craig Trulock and will be chosen based in part upon comments received from interested participants during the comment period. Written comments can be submitted by mail or e-mail to: Craig Trulock-District Ranger, Pinedale Ranger District, PO Box 220, Pinedale, WY 82941; E-mail: ctrulock@fs.fed.us. For questions, contact Cindy Stein or Craig Trulock at the Pinedale Ranger District office, 307-367-4326.
Highlights of Proposed Action are shown below. The Preferred Alternative, #3, is a scaled down alternative from these desired actions:
Expand from summer-seasonal to year-round operating season.
Expand permitted operating area from 15-24 acres.
Expand existing restaurant facility from 3,800 square feet to 5,000 square feet.
Add a 4,000 square foot open-sided Pavilion.
Add guest cabins to increase from current 9 to a total of 23.
Expand RV full hookup campsites from 20 to 50 along lakeshore.
Expand from 29 to 113 lodging & camping units.
Increase parking from 86 to 242 spaces
Increase boat slips & marina from 31 to 70 including 10 bouy moorings.
Increase people capacity in restaurant from 35 to 80 and lodging from 114 to 416.
Add a floating marina.
Add a 15-boar septic holding tank/pump station.
Remove old bathhouse for cabins.
Add a 2,100 square foot campground Check-in building with showers & restrooms.
Relocate the current dry storage area for 40 boats/trailers
Replace existing 1,000 square foot Utility Maintenance Building with 2,100 square foot structure.
Reconstruct septic system to support expansion and add overflow alarms.
Lakeside Lodge Resort & Marina has been in operation since the early 1950s under a special use permit by the Forest Service. The current owners, High Plains Marina, LLC, purchased the resort in 1994 and made significant improvements to the facilities. Their proposed action will expand their season of operation to full-year and nearly triple their capacity for services to guests. The proposal will retain some of the existing facilities, remove some, and add some other new ones.
Since Lakeside Lodge is located on Fremont Lake, which is the municipal water supply for the town of Pinedale, as well as water that flows into the Green River, a major tributary to the Colorado River, there are many potential concerns with any expansion project along the lake shore as well as increasing human activity on the lake which might potentially add pollutants to the water supply. Some of the concerns already identified include possible water quality degradation due to increased sewage from the proposed septic tanks and drain fields, increased likelihood of oil and gasoline spills into Fremont Lake due to increased boat use, destruction of cultural resources in the area, increased noise and litter from higher visitor traffic, and possible negative impacts to wildlife that live in the area.
The 89-page EA contains the proposed action, four alternatives, alternative maps, a groundwater report, water sample information, Lakeside Lodge pets policy, and mule deer migration route map. Copies of the EA are available from the Pinedale Ranger District office.
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