03/03/2026
Dear Editor:
In the 1989 Movie Field of Dreams there is this famous quote,” If you build it, they will come.” Well the Lake is built but it appears that not many people are coming! Almost 10 years have elapsed and nothing has changed other than the expenditures that continue at the taxpayer’s expense. It appears that nothing is closer to resolution and we get more of the same.
The deal with the Developer is all but done. I think when he agreed to purchase the 200 acres he had no idea what was involved and what the expense of such a project would be. I just know we are at an impasse and things have to change!
Looking back when the Lake was being constructed there were grand plans, 8 fishing piers, 11 boat docks, four boat ramps, marina, restrooms, picnic areas, playground, small store, and gas facilities. What do we have?
The development of a sound infrastructure is critical before anything can proceed. The question is how you pay for it. I see grants being awarded all over and how many have we gotten for the Lake? Lake Seminole just received a big one for hydrilla control.
The U.S. House voted 397-28 to pass a bipartisan appropriations bill that includes over $14 million in funding for projects in Middle and Southwest Georgia, according to Rep. Sanford Bishop’s office. As part of the bill, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers would receive $9,747,000 to manage invasive aquatic vegetation, restore access on Lake Seminole, and restore the local ecosystem.
What are we missing? We have paid a Lake consultant almost ½ million and I assume he is still getting 3,500 per month for his services to sell the Lake and not one acre has been sold. I suggest we redirect this funding to find a firm that can bring grants and some funds to develop this infrastructure. There has got to be some type of monies available to fund what we need to get this thing moving!
When it comes to the Lake we are dead in the water. As I have stressed previously we have to move in a different direction if we are to have any type of development. We do not need more of the same which is nothing!
Sincerely
Mike Bishop
Cairo, GA
