After receiving grant money and timing being right, management at the Lake Brownwood State Park are preparing to close the boat ramp at the park on August 1, 2011.
Although lake levels continue to drop, Lake Brownwood State Park manager John Holland stated that the boats have been able to launch successfully all summer and continue to do so at this time. According to Holland, a sand bar has developed behind the launching area causing some problems for those launching their watercraft.
“We want business at the state park, we want people to continue to come to the state park; however sometimes you have to do something before someone damages something,” stated Holland. “We have plenty of water here, but low water causes these sand bars to form.”
The closure of the boat ramp is only temporary according to Holland and management plans to reopen the ramp as soon as the work is complete. They hope that the ramp will be back open within a couple of weeks. All other services at the state park remain open to the public such as camping, fishing and swimming.
He further explained that the ramp has been needing repairs for a while and now with the $9000 in grant money, the repairs will be completed with concrete and steel rather than just repaired in sections.
“With the lake down, it is the ideal time to do the repairs,” said Holland. “Sometimes when the lake is down, the money is not available. We are fortunate to receive the grant to be able to do these repairs.”
The Brown County Water Improvement District’s public boat ramp near the dam remains open after having a similar problem with a sand bar that had developed. A channel was formed making it easier to launch boats from that location, according to Holland. The sand bar at the state park will also have a channel formed which will aid boaters until the water levels return to more normal levels.
The ramp at the dam is currently open, but according to officials at BCWID; boaters need to exercise care as they make launches.
“Boaters will have to walk boats in and out of the water because it’s too shallow to drop their motors at the ramp,” stated officials at BCWID.
After the ramp at the State Park is closed, the boat ramp at the dam will be the only public ramp open at Lake Brownwood until the park ramp repairs are complete. Lake Brownwood is currently 13.5 feet below spillway level according to the BCWID website.
