Swan and Mirror Lakes are considered important symbols on the UConn campus. Yet the lakes, which are over 100 years old, are in desperate need of maintenance in order to restore their original beauty.
According to University President Michael Hogan, the Save our Lakes Campaign has been launched to tp raise funds to help restore the lakes on campus.
The goal of the campaign is to educate students and alumni of the conditions of the lakes and raise money to help clean and landscape them, according to Stephen Rhodes, executive assistant to the President.
The UConn Foundation has set up a fund on its Web site asking alumni to donate money. Additionally, T-shirts are being sold at the Union Exchange Convenience store in the Student Union so that students can help make a difference too.
On the front corner of the shirt, there is a cartoon image of Hogan in a boat on a lake. On the back of the shirt is a life preserver and the letters "S.O.L." According to Rhodes, $3.50 will be added to the fund for every shirt sold for $10.
President Hogan estimates that at least $1 million must be raised to restore both lakes.
"Over the long-term, they require a lot of maintenance," Hogan said.
The maintenance is something the President finds necessary in order to retain an image which has become a symbol of the University.
When UConn was established, the lakes were merely swamps in the middle of a farm. As buildings and roads were constructed on campus, the swamps were transformed into "catch basins," or lakes, to catch run-off water. The lakes eventually run into public streams and rivers.
"We have an environmental responsibility to keep the water clean," Rhodes said.
According to Rhodes, there are phragmites that grow in Swan Lake that, if left alone, will fill the entire lake. This past summer, a crew of workers vacuumed out the over-grown plant life, algae and muck. The water was instantly clearer.
"Two students actually came out with inner tubes, although they had to be turned away," Rhodes said.
Although the university made progress over the summer, there is still a lot of work to be done. According to Rhodes, the lakes need to be dredged to remove the silt and sand. Landscaping around Mirror Lake will also be beneficial, not only to make the area look nicer, but to deter the geese which currently overpopulate the lake and leave waste behind.
According to Hogan, the university is making an effort to enhance the landscape around Swan Lake - across the great lawn - to Mirror Lake.
"They're a part of the front door to the university," Hogan said.
Although UConn2000 funds can be used for some of the landscaping, there is not enough money to support the lakes.
Hogan believes the lakes are what connect alumni to the campus when they come back and visit. "Generations of students have come and gone. They come back to campus now and they don't remember much, but they do remember the lakes," Hogan said.
Angela Nizzardo, who graduated from UConn in 1982, remembers being thrown into Mirror Lake during her freshman year. Nizzardo used to spend her free time sitting by the lake on nice days, but recalls that the water was really dirty even back then.
"They should clean up the lakes so other girls can get thrown into them," Nizzardo said jokingly. "I think it's great they're cleaning them up though; they're an important part of campus."
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