By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Historian
After the Division of Safety of Dams (DSOD) declared, in1973, that the level of Lake Arrowhead had to be lowered by 70 feet, due to earthquake safety concerns, many in the community became outraged and concerned. A public meeting was held at Rim High School to give mountain residents a chance to voice their concerns and provide facts.
Concern was raised about the lowering of the water level and residents questioned the threat to health and safety in relation to the domestic water supply, the supply of water for fire protection, the ecological effect on the watershed in general, compared to the minimum risk to life and property currently created by the dam and its impounded waters. Besides, they knew Lake Arrowhead property values would plummet and the aesthetic beauty of the area would be shattered with 70 feet less water in the lake, plus the fact that their boats would be sitting in dust and the lake’s edge would be quite a distance from their current homes. They didn’t trust that Boise Cascade would ever fix the dam and feared they would be stuck without a usable lake.
Lake Arrowhead and the village were popular vacation destinations in the early 1970s. This is a tourist souvenir plate.
The DSOD stated, on March 1, 1974, that an order would be given to lower the lake level unless remedial action was swiftly taken. A short delay occurred as the Department of Water Resources ordered an Environmental Impact Report to be drawn up. There was a real fear among some homeowners that, if government money was accepted or borrowed, the lake may become open for public usage, a result few wanted.
Boise Cascade had resumed ownership of the dam and lake from the Chicago Group to whom they had sold the lake to a few years before and were foreclosing on due to contract violations. They stated they were unwilling to pay the entire cost of the repair or pay for a new dam, contending it was a community problem. But the various property owner associations were unwilling to pay for a new dam when they had no ownership of the lake.
There were several ideas proposed to Boise Cascade on how to resolve the problem. Engineer Ralph Wagner recommended fixing the old dam by adding additional support, such as a buttress, to the downstream side of the dam. This repair idea would not require the draining of the lake. That repair, however, would cost $2 million. Subsequently, Boise Cascade again refused to pay.
The Lake Arrowhead Property Owners Association, led by Hal Pierce, Ed Duarte and Bob Everhart, began negotiating with Boise Cascade and concluded the best solution may be the construction of a new dam downstream from the original dam, an idea that Boise Cascade accepted, but stated it would not fund the $5 million price tag. However, the company saw a recreational advantage and additional land being created in that proposal. Both sides sought legal opinions on the technicalities of the steps needed to keep the lake private and/or owned by the residents.
The beach at the end of the peninsula was very popular.
In March 1974, the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors approved the introduction of legislation by State Assemblyman Jerry Lewis (SB 2141) to authorize the formation of an improvement zone around the lake, which could issue bonds to construct a new dam. The bonds could be repaid by property taxes generated from within the improvement zone. Lewis introduced the bill on April 22.
On June 6, the DSOD stated that, because it believed satisfactory progress was not being reached on the dam’s safety issues, it would issue an order on Aug. 29 to begin lowering the water level of Lake Arrowhead, effective Sept. 1, 1974.
There was some satisfaction with the draining delay that at least the property owners would enjoy that summer. The demand was that the water would be released at a rate of two feet a month until it reached the level of 70 feet below the spillway. It was never stated the process or method that would be used to drain the lake, which is also the question facing the property owners at this time.
On June 7, an agreement was signed between the Lake Arrowhead Property Owners Association, Hamiltair Property Owners Association and Boise Cascade to provide for the transfer of ownership of the lake, the dam and other real property to a corporation composed of the property owners. But that was only to occur if all aspects of the lake proposal, including funding and building, went in Boise Cascade’s chosen direction.
The water play area at Lake Arrowhead Village which attracted tourists.
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