City of Canandaigua (population 10545)
Name of service/government operation: Canandaigua Lake Watershed Council
Form of sharing: Intermunicipal management of Canandaigua Lake Watershed
Services affected: Watershed management
Year started: 1998
Partners: Towns of Gorham, South Bristol, Bristol, Canandaigua, Middlesex, Italy, Hopewell, Naples, Potter; Villages of Newark, Palmyra, Naples and Rushville; City of Canandaigua
Primary goal(s)/motivation(s): Protection of the Canandaigua Lake for the mutual benefit of the municipalities that border the lake and/or that draw drinking water from the lake.
What planning process preceded the sharing? Years of discussion, leading to the development of a Watershed Management Plan.
What governance structures and/or agreements are required to maintain this agreement? Intermunicipal agreement to provide funding, employ a Watershed Manager, and provide a governing structure.
Challenges: Achieving agreement on the threats to the lake and a management plan.
Benefits: Protection of the lake for the general good of the public and the participating municipalities.
Impact on budget: Each municipality provides financial support based on a negotiated formula that considers benefits to and impacts of that municipality on the lake.
Impact on labor: One employee was hired.
Impact on service: There is a coordinated intermunicipal effort to protect the lake for all users of the water and shoreline owners.
Key contact: Kevin Olvany, Watershed Manager