History

The new Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association, Inc. formed on January 1, 2010, when two long-standing lake advocacy groups merged:  Canandaigua Lake Association, Inc. and Canandaigua Lake Watershed Alliance, Inc. A bit about the history of each.

Canandaigua Lake Association, Inc.

The oldest lake advocacy group, CLA, was officially organized in 1955 as the  as the East Shore Association of Canandaigua Lake, Inc. (ESA).  Formed from the informal Cottagers Association of the East Shore, it largely represented east shore homeowners.  As development pressures increased, the organization expanded its mission and goals to represent all lake advocates and thus became Canandaigua Lake Association, Inc. in 2007.

As the lake became more threatened and development pressures increased, the organization expanded its mission and goals to represent all lake advocates and thus became Canandaigua Lake Association, Inc. in 2007. Increasingly it reached out to partner with other lake advocacy groups such as Canandaigua Lake Watershed Alliance, Inc. (CLWA).

Canandaigua Lake Watershed Alliance, Inc.

In 2000, the Canandaigua Lake Pure Waters Association and the Canandaigua Lake Task Force officially merged to form the Canandaigua Lake Watershed Alliance, Inc.

Always focused on the scientific analyses associated with monitoring the lake, they too responded to increasing pressure on lake resources by partnering with organizations such as CLA and other lake advocacy groups on several projects.  Most notably, CLA and CLW spearheaded lawsuits against the developer RSM, whose proposed development on the west side violates the spirit of the laws and presents serious threats to the lake environment.

Our Goal
Canandaigua Lake Watershed Association, Inc. is dedicated to promoting responsible development that thoroughly addresses the unique environment of the lake.  We constantly evaluate development projects at the town government levels and their impact on lake health, views, and roads.

It’s important that developers adopt strategies different from those that might be appropriate when developing a sub-division on flat land some distance from a major source of drinking water.  Responsible development calls on them to:

• Maintain water quality, on which 60,000 people rely for drinking
• Protect wooded hillsides, fragile shale, green life, and wildlife
• Prevent run-off into the lake

Canandaigua Lake's future depends upon all of us to be responsible stewards.