Defenders of Crooked Lake
On Saturday, November 13, 2021, community members will be celebrating 100 years of the Babson Park Community Church & Babson Park Elementary School 1921 Building. The celebration will highlight the uniqueness of our “Small is Beautiful” Town, the “Parks” in Babson Park from Historic Pillar to Pillar, and include a dedication of Dale Fair Pine, […]
Rainfall during 2019 and 2020 was above average, with 68 and 58 inches respectively. This has led to higher water levels on Crooked Lake. At the end of April 2021, the gauge at Bob’s Landing read 118.70 feet NAVD88, which is approximately 0.3 feet higher than the same time last year. Water levels could increase […]
Florida LAKEWATCH is a citizen volunteer lake monitoring program coordinated through the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences/FFGS Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences. The Defenders of Crooked Lake have been supporting and participating in the LAKEWATCH program on Crooked Lake for nearly 30 years. Most recently, past President Bob Luther has been collecting […]
In March 2021, Polk County Utilities was assigned ownership of the Crooked Lake Park Sewerage Company following abandonment by the previous owner, Louis Garrard. Mr. Garrard had been charged with 15 felony counts by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection related to sanitary sewer overflows from the wastewater collection system and unauthorized discharges from the […]
Defenders of Crooked Lake honored Dale R. Fair with a planted Longleaf Pine & and plaque which recognizes his contributions to the Babson Park community. He was a founding member and a past president of Defenders ofCrooked Lake; a highly respected principal of Babson Park Elementary; a member of Babson Park Community Church; as well […]
When a five year old friend stated recently that Earth Day is every day, it was heartening! And certainly, the community involvement this year was stellar! Defenders of Crooked Lake members Bunny Wetzel, Buzz Faiks, and Sally Morrison participated in clean-up that helps keep plastic & litter debris out of the lake. Sandy Madden gathered […]
On March 18, the Defenders of Crooked Lake gathered for their annual meeting. Kent and Cindy Lilly generously allowed the Defenders to use their pasture on Windy Hill, south of Seminole Road, which provided a beautiful view of Crooked Lake while the members gathered in a socially-distanced manner. President Jim Tully started the official ceremony […]
Staff from the Polk County Natural Resources Division recently presented to the Defenders of Crooked Lake Board of Directors regarding their ongoing efforts to prevent the spread of invasive plants in Crooked lake. Their primary targets include Water Hyacinth, Hydrilla, Cuban Bulrush, and West Indian Marsh Grass. A copy of the presentation from Polk County […]
Mark your calendars for the 2020 annual Crooked Lake boat parade- Saturday, December 12 at 6pm. Meet in front of the Crooked Lake Prairie boardwalk. Anyone is welcome to join the parade. A $100 cash prize will be awarded to the boat with the the best decorations!
The Crooked Lake Park Sewerage Company, which operates a wastewater utility in the neighborhood between US 27 and Crooked Lake, suffered repeated sewer overflows in the summers of 2019 and 2020. These overflows resulted in raw sewage discharging directly into canals on Crooked Lake. In 2019, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) filed an […]