THE HISTORY OF LOT 1 - aka THE BEACH
Before Lot 1
In the beginning homeowners in Serene Lakes used the Serene Lakes Lodge beach for recreation. Then in 1975 a new manager at the lodge declared that homeowners would have to pay a daily fee to use his beach. The rebels, led by Don Scoble, formed the SOB (Save Our Beach) committee to protest and investigate the legality of the fee. They even staged a beach sit-in, which was broken up by the arrival of the sheriff, who threatened arrest if they didn’t leave. Although it was felt that the lodge was legally bound to provide beach access without additional cost, the SLPOA board decided not to pursue the legal aspects, but to approach the Sierra Lakes Water District to see about leasing Lot 1 as an alternative. Years before, Lot 1 had been deeded by the developer to the water district as a recreational area. The visitors using the campgrounds across from Lot 1 had access to the area, but it was just an empty lot. The water board granted the lease to SLPOA in July 1976. SLPOA was to pay the water district $500 a year, which would be forgiven if improvements were made.The Beginnings
The first thing that SLPOA installed was a water pipe, then came the volleyball court and horseshoe pits. The following year, the aspens were planted, watered by buckets, hand-carried from the water pipe. A load of sand became the beach. A three foot chain link fence was installed around the sand area to keep the children in and the dogs out. Of course, this had to be taken down in the fall and stored upstairs at the water district building. As tables were acquired, these too had to be stored.When the Annual Barbecue was moved from the lodge to Lot 1 in 1983 all the pots, pans, cookers, barbecue were borrowed from the Haliwells. In turn these items had to be cleaned by hoses in their driveway the next morning. As more “stuff” was accumulated, it too had to be hauled and stored at the water district or in the basement of a nearby cabin.
In 1986, as the beach committee was caught in an early snowstorm (didn’t we learn anything from the Donner Party?) while removing the fence and struggling with the task of carrying it and all the other equipment up the stairs, hip deep in snow, Mary Lou Martin turned to the others and said, “Why can’t we have a building here on the beach to store all this stuff?”
Someone else said, “Great idea, and it could have a bathroom too.”
What took longer to build than Tunnel Six?
The answer is the building on Lot 1. In 1987 a committee was formed and Mary Lou, George Garcia and Harrison Meyers began developing plans for beach improvement, including an appropriate building. In the process of asking for suggestions, it became clear that Serene Lakes cabin owners possessed a wealth of talents that could be tapped. The Haliwells, the Gardners, the Loses and others who had cooked great barbecues submitted recommendations. Al Colosi and Bill Close drew up basic design and engineering.By 1988, Ulrich Luscher and George Garcia had completed architectural drawings; all that was needed was a new contract between SLPOA and SLCWD, from whom we lease the lot. SLPOA president, Mark Himelstein, and the Board of Directors felt that the building should not begin until we had a long term contract with SLCWD, which would guarantee that Lot 1 would always be reserved for recreation . As part of the negotiations with SLCWD, a poll of property owners was conducted in 1990. The building project was favored by a vote of 3 to 1.
To finance the building, SLPOA dues were increased $25 that would be designated solely for the building. T-shirts, hats and later other articles of merchandise were sold with the profits going into the building fund. The Cabin Tour was also a money maker for the building.
By now, it was 1991. The water board agreed that the building would be an improvement to our beach, but said, “We have a problem. The Serene Lakes subdivision map states that there can be no building constructed on designated recreation areas, so you can’t build your building, even if we give you a new lease.”
“Yes we can,” said Bill Abbot, “and I know a way to do it.” Bill is a cabin owner and a land use attorney. So in 1992, Bill filed a petition on behalf of SLPOA in the Superior Court of Placer County to strike the building restriction on a small part of Lot 1. The judge ruled in favor of the petition.
Construction began in the summer of 1993, under the supervision of Rudy Knudsen. Rudy guided the work through ‘93 and part of ‘94, turning over the job to Gus Campagna. During the four summers of work nearly fifty men and women volunteered their time and considerable talents. Donner Spitz and SLCWD contributed and operated heavy equipment. Workers were rewarded with a barbecue and a T-shirt designed by Nancy Oudegeest that showed construction and the words Charter Member - Lot 1.
Since that time, the chain link fence has been eliminated; new docks, lawn area and more tables have been added making Lot 1 and the building a favorite place for residents to spend their leisure time.