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Mentor Ohio_Sunset_on_the_Coast_of_Lake_Erie_CC 2.0 Erik Drost

Save Surfing at Mentor Lagoons

Provide input to help preserve The Goons

Mentor-Lagoons-Nature-Preserve-Shoreline-Master-Plan-Survey-1536x864

Attend a Public Meeting: March 12, 2024

The City of Mentor is developing a Mentor Lagoons Nature Preserve Shoreline Master Plan, which will be a plan to "restore, preserve, and protect the shoreline." (More info here: https://cityofmentor.com/public-meeting-mentor-lagoons-nature-preserve-shoreline-master-plan/) 

A public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 12 from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM at the Springbrook Gardenhouse located at 6776 Heisley Road in Mentor.

The public is invited to review the results of the online survey from January and provide input on preliminary concepts and access opportunities that have been developed to protect, restore, and preserve the Mentor Lagoons Nature Preserve shoreline.

Representatives from the City of Mentor and SmithGroup will be available for questions.

This is the next avenue for sharing your cares and concerns about protecting surfing at Mentor Lagoons - make plans to attend!

What Should I Say at the Meeting?

Here are some suggestions for talking points to help Save the Goons:

  • Talk about what recreational activities you engage in within the project area, and be sure to indicate that "surfing" is one of the activities you participate in.
  • Let them know that:
    • low-impact access to the surf spot matters to you (i.e. the informal trails that already exist rather than paved roads)
    • stairs are needed to safely navigate to the lake
    • you do not support armoring the shoreline since it will make access more difficult and dangerous (particularly getting out of the water) and it will prevent sediment from the eroding bluffs from supplying the beach and the sandbars with sand
    • you do not support putting in any offshore infrastructure that will negatively impact the quality of surfable waves
    • you do not support building new permanent infrastructure along the shoreline if it will need to be armored in the future
    • you do support maintaining a natural shoreline that will change shape over time, which allows for sediment from the eroding bluffs to supply sand to the beach and sandbars
    • ask them to engage a coastal geomorphologist who understands Great Lakes geomorphology to study the impacts of various shoreline management approaches on the surf and the sandy beach that exists in part of the project area