Hess Lake Improvement Board
Bart Calvi, Chair
Brooks Township Representative
Dale Twing, Secretary & Treasurer
Newaygo County Drain Commissioner
Ken Delaat
Newaygo County Commissioner
Mark Slocum
Grant Township Representative
Grant Bryan
Lake Resident Representative
Environmental Consultant: Progressive Companies
Next Meeting: September 17, 2024, 9:30 a.m. at the Newaygo County Drain Commissioner's Office:
306 S North Street
White Cloud, MI 49349
The Hess Lake Improvement Board was established in accordance with Michigan’s Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Act. The Lake Board includes a lakefront property owner, representatives from Brooks and Grant Townships, a Newaygo County Commissioner and the Newaygo County Drain Commissioner. Several board members are lake residents. Since its establishment, the Lake Board has implemented several programs to help improve conditions in Hess Lake. Lake Board funding is derived through special assessment of benefitting properties around the lake. This website includes information about Hess Lake and lake management activities being coordinated under the direction of the Hess Lake Improvement Board.
The Hess Lake Improvement Board is separate and apart from the Hess Lake Improvement Association. The Hess Lake Improvement Board is a governmental entity established by state statute. The Hess Lake Improvement Association is a volunteer, non-profit group that works to promote a spirit of good fellowship and a sense of community among its members. To find out more about the Hess Lake Improvement Association, visit: https://hesslake.com/.
Plans in Motion
Scientists from Carp Solutions LLC are going to be trapping and removing carp via box netting in 2024. The tentative schedule is as follows:
June 28: Install nets
July 12-15: Bait and set nets
July 16: Pull nets: 399 carp caught and removed
July 26-29: Bait and set nets
July 30: Pull nets: 244 carp caught and removed
August 9-12: Bait and set nets
August 9: Electrofishing: 10 carp caught and released
August 13: Pull nets: 99 carp caught and removed
Of note: 1,937 catfish were caught in the nets
August 30: Uninstall nets
A total of 752 carp were caught and removed from Hess Lake in 2024. During those efforts 4,931 catfish were caught and released back into Hess Lake as required by the DNR.
Because bluegill are known to eat carp eggs, they are stocked as part of the effort to control the carp population. On June 6
8,530 bluegill (4-7 inches long) were stocked in Hess Lake.