Madawaska Street residents say they received a letter from Greater Madawaska Township earlier this summer saying they must remove their docks by Oct. 1. Kevin Lentz has lived by the water in Calabogie for 18 years and says his dock has been on the water for nearly 70 years. “Good [the letter] I just said get the dock out by the first of October. I’ve never taken my boat out until at least October 15th,” the homeowner tells CTV News. Lentz says he is one of more than a dozen residents on the waterfront who have been told to pull out their dock. The letter from the municipality describes a recent survey carried out before the summer, which states that the waterfront is actually owned by the municipality. “I have waterfront property,” Lentz asserts. A sidewalk, road and about six feet of grass separate his house and Calabogie Lake. “I maintain it, I pay my taxes. My taxes say I have 54 feet of frontage.” Barbara Marsh and her husband are leading a push to keep the docks in place. “We’ve been here for 20 years and we’ve never gotten a letter, and now we have to pull out our docks,” Marsh tells CTV News. “Why? What’s the reason?” Marsh maintains that no reason has been given for the removal and worries that their piece of paradise will be lost to urban development. “What is the underlying thing they are planning or doing?” The municipality writes that one recommendation from insurance carriers is to order the docks removed to minimize liability exposure. A public meeting is being held on Wednesday, August 24 at 6 p.m. at the Calabogie Community Hall, where residents can voice their opinions to the council regarding the removal of their docks.
