Boat sticker fee hike OK’d for Crystal Lake and Lakewood residents to fund weed treatment at lake

A new tiered system of boat sticker fees based on horsepower will be introduced to boat owners who use Crystal Lake. The increased costs are dedicated to fund maintaining the lake ecology, according to the Crystal Lake Park District.

An intergovernmental agreement among the city of Crystal Lake, the village of Lakewood and the Crystal Lake Park District has now been approved by all bodies.

The Crystal Lake City Council approved the agreement in a 5-2 vote and the Crystal Lake Park District passed it unanimously last week. The village of Lakewood passed the agreement unanimously on Tuesday.

Vessels with more than 200 horsepower will see the biggest sticker fee hike, with a 567% increase to $200. Boats with 100 to 199 horsepower will have a sticker fee of $125, while owners of boats with 40 to 99 horsepower will pay $75 for stickers, and watercraft with 40 to 99 horsepower will be charged $50 for stickers. Non-motorized boats will not see an increase.

The sticker costs had been $30 for motorized boats and $20 for non-motorized boats. The fees were collected to pay for supplies and staff salaries to patrol the lake provided by Lakewood, according to city documents.

Only Crystal Lake and Lakewood residents are able to purchase the yearly boat sticker and use Crystal Lake.

Lake Advisory Committee President Gregg Kobelinski said neighboring lakes like Wonder Lake and Lake Zurich have raised their boat sticker fees to similar amounts as the ones as they proposed.

Eelgrass, a native plant to the lake, has been a problem for many years as it can accumulate at the surface and create inches-thick muck.

The Crystal Lake Park District purchased an $110,000 weed harvester earlier this year after a recommendation from the Lake Advisory Committee, and dozens of residents voiced concerns about the amount of weeds drudged up in the lake.

To offset the cost of the harvester purchase, the park district, along with the Lake Advisory Committee, proposed to raise boat sticker fees. The increased fees will also fund costs of lake ecology consultants and chemical treatments used on Milfoil and other invasive weed species.

The harvester is a machine that pulls out excess eelgrass from the bottom of the lake before it floats to the surface. Before the purchase, the park district would rent a service that harvested the lake a couple times a year.

Crystal Lake Park District’s budget for lake ecology is $67,000.

Crystal Lake City Council member Ellen Brady opposed raising the boat sticker fee, saying the park district should cover lake ecology costs through its existing budget rather than have boaters pay higher fees.

“This is not just a boater problem,” she said. “All users benefit by ensuring the lake’s longevity.”

Crystal Lake Park District Executive Director Jason Herbster said the district’s limited funds make it difficult to cover costs of the lake ecology.

The Crystal Lake City Council approved the proposal with a condition that the park district will give monthly reports of what they do with the generated money.

This was the second time the Lake Advisory Committee presented the idea to the city of Crystal Lake. Last year, the city voted against the proposal.

The Lake Advisory Committee, which formed in 2019, is an informal group that gives the park district recommendations on how to manage Crystal Lake.

Crystal Lake resident and operator of the McHenry County Blog Cal Skinner said all users of the lake, including swimmers and property owners, should pay for a lake ecology fee.

“Nobody that is going to benefit is going to pay under this ordinance,” Skinner said at the Lakewood meeting on Tuesday.

Crystal Lake Mayor Haig Haleblian agreed with the proposal and said owners of $200,000 boats will be able to pay for the $200 sticker fee.

“Every boat owner I’ve talked to about this has no objection to it whatsoever. In fact they’re happy to do it,” Haleblian said.