Mosquito Lake celebrates 75 years

BAZETTA -- A time capsule commemorating the first 75 years of Mosquito Lake was sealed Saturday in a replica of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers castle built on Warren Meadville Road.

The capsule, which will be opened in 2044 during the 100th anniversary ceremony, has the original program that commemorated the opening of the lake project and biographies of people who have worked at the lake, as well as patches and pins of the organizations that help maintain the dam and the reservoir.

The reservoir cost $4 million to build in 1938 and over the decades has prevented an estimated $520 million in potential flood damages. It has also provided 300 trillion gallons of water, primarily to Warren, but also to other area communities, said William Spring, a resource manager for Corps of Engineers.

"The original investment was money well spent," Spring said.

In addition, the lake has provided recreational opportunities for families and others through most of its existence. It's been a place where friends and family meet, bond and grow together.

"This is a place where many residents had their first boat ride and young people caught their first fish," said Col. Andrew J. "Coby" Short, commander of the Pittsburgh District of the Corps of Engineers.

Said Susan Vance, assistant chief of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' Parks and Watercraft division, "There are an average of 2.1 million visitors to the lake every year."

Over the next several years, an expected $600,000 worth of repairs and upgrades will be done to the dam, according to Spring.

"It is an economic driver," he said. "It has a nearly $600,000 annual operating budget."

According to the corps' website, the lake, authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1938, is one of 16 flood-control projects in the corps' Pittsburgh District. It provides flood protection for the Mahoning River Valley, as well as the Beaver and upper Ohio Rivers.

Also Saturday, Bazetta police and fire departments, in conjunction with the Mosquito Lake Marina, held the 16th annual Safety Day. Safety equipment was on display. Organizations that participated included the Mahoning Valley Crisis Response Team, Trumbull County Sheriff's Office Dive Team and Heather Merritt's Birds In Flight Sanctuary.

"We average between 3,000 and 4,000 people visiting this event every year," said Dennis Lewis, Bazetta fire chief.