On April 26th, 2022, the City of San Diego announced the closure of Lake Hodges to recreational activities for "emergency repairs" needed after a recent inspection. We are now going into year 2 of this closure, and the community is growing increasingly frustrated by the lack of communication and transparency from city officials.

To access the areas that need to be repaired, the lake is planned to be drawn down 18ft from its current level. Yet no environmental or economic studies were performed to measure the impact this repair project will have on protected resident and migratory birds, spawning of fish species, impacts on nearby community wells, and impacts to related businesses such as boat, kayak, wind-sports, paddle-sports, and concession services. Recreational access has historically been allowed at these levels in the past, and it is unclear why the public's access has been taken away to use this valuable resource.

We were promised by city officials that we could sit down and talk with them after our news interview on CBS 8, but we have been ignored since then. It's frustrating to see that the concerns and needs of the community are being ignored.

The City's justification for closing recreation at Hodges reservoir is that "recreation activities at Hodges reservoir will need to be closed because once the water level is lowered, the boat ramp will no longer be accessible, and the exposed shoreline will be deep, slippery mud making it unsafe for public access." This statement is not entirely accurate or reflective of historic recreational practices. Recreation programs at Hodges Reservoir have rarely, if ever been closed during low water events, even when substantially lower than proposed. Some activities had to be modified or suspended, but the reservoir was never completely closed. The City’s statement that it would be unsafe for the public to access the reservoir because of “deep slippery mud” is a bit disingenuous. A few people did get stuck over the past three decades, but they were predominantly hikers/walkers and were not seriously hurt. Two incidents happened on days the reservoir was closed. Contrast that with the adjacent trails on City property where three people have been killed and numerous people are injured every year. Why has there has never been talk of closing the trails? Historical practices during low water events included allowing car-top boaters, kayaks, SUPs, windsurfers, and other paddle sports to launch in safe designated zones. Problem areas were identified and posted. There were few if any patrons who had a problem when launching from designated shore access areas. Closing the reservoir to all water activities has no historic precedence or justification.

The City stated that displaced user groups could visit other reservoirs. This is not an accurate statement. Stand-up paddlers, foilers, wingers, sailboarders, and several other paddle or sail groups are not allowed on other City reservoirs. The nearest comparable freshwater venue is 65 miles away.

The economic impact of this closure is not just limited to the local concession, as the City suggests. There are dozens of City businesses that will be affected, including 9 boating/kayaking, 4 bait and tackle, 4 sailing, 7 fish guiding, 2 photographic, and numerous support businesses. If the City had done a proper study, they would have known this. A cursory study was done in 2020 by a consortium of businesses and business owners. The purpose was to calculate the tax revenue generated for the City by local businesses directly related to all City reservoir recreation. Very conservative numbers were estimated to be $11 million annually. Even though several of the City reservoirs are not within the City limits, the City Lakes provide an important fiscal and sociological value primarily for the City and secondly for the region