While appearing like a generous offer on the surface, the Town of Liberty’s opportunity to accept the donation of Swan Lake may have been too good to be true – and rightly so.

Flat out, the dam responsibilities would most definitely prove to be a challenge for the town as is. Even though the owners want to gift the lake to the town, the current state of the dam is very tenuous.

And while leaving the potential ownership of the lake up to fate is not necessarily an exciting idea, the potential financial burden and unpredictability of repairing and maintaining a dam which already is under the microscope of the Department of Environmental Conservation could prove to be a burden on the entire township’s taxpayers. 

If Liberty passes on this, who else besides the state, county or an extremely wealthy entity would say yes?

However there would be some positives to taking the deed to the lake, with increased recreational use and a step towards protection from overdevelopment being part of it. Unfortunately, the lake is currently unsafe for human contact and limits what can be done with the property. 

Unlike its potential “State park managed by the county” template, Lake Superior State Park in Bethel, its recreational uses would be very limited. Not to mention, the deal doesn’t even come with any land surrounding the lake, so that step towards protection from overdevelopment would not be a very large one without an addition to what is being donated including any land parcels.

It truly does look like the current owner is trying to gift the town Swan Lake before they are responsible for fixing the dam. The burden of  paying millions of dollars to fix a dam that would inspire minimal profit post-reconstruction is one big expense we feel the town should pass on.

Currently, the town has Walnut Mtn. Park and Hanofee Park where town residents can enjoy themselves. Adding this extra “park” to their inventory might be a bridge too far.