Cedar Lake Background & Folklore

For generations, Cedar Lake has been a vital asset to the Cedar Rapids community, providing opportunities for fishing, canoeing, birdwatching, and walking the trails. "It gave easy access to a lot of families that couldn't necessarily afford to travel. The lake was right there," says Felicia Wyrick, a co-founder of Friends of Cedar Lake. "I used to work near the lake and walk around it over my lunch hour, and I loved it. To be right downtown, but still in a natural environment, was so rejuvenating."

Friends of Cedar Lake was a grassroots group that included a diverse range of people living in the neighborhood and throughout the community who cared about the lake's long-term sustainability.

The members of this group shared a mission to enhance the lake they loved, ensure its quality, and set aside some misperceptions.

Today, Cedar Lake is a healthy body of water that's perfect for fishing, paddling, and more. At one time, however, concerns, rumors, and folklore surrounded its quality. Some people blamed local Industries for polluting the lake, but most of the pollutants actually came from housing developments around the lake that were built in the 1940s and 1950s. Foundations were often treated with chlordane to prevent termite infestations, and that toxic chemical would get into the groundwater and leak into the lake.

As a result, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recommended restrictions on the number of fish consumed from Cedar Lake. The lake was monitored for decades until it was taken off the endangered waters list in 2015. 

The Friends of Cedar Lake wanted to ensure this messaging was accurately portrayed in the community while also focusing on the long-term health of the lake moving forward. It was a massive undertaking. Wyrick remembers thinking, "Well, if we're going to clean up the lake, where do we start? Plus, the Cedar Lake watershed is really huge."

Stormwater runoff was a primary concern, as sediment entered the lake, filling it and decreasing its depth. "It wasn't healthy for the water quality or the long-term health of the fish living there. We needed to find a solution for that," she says. The group looked to Easter Lake in Des Moines as an example of the city, county, and DNR working together on a lake's health, runoff, and watershed management. Friends of Cedar Lake knew they wouldn't get the support or funding needed if it didn't have a sustainable, long-term benefit.

Flood protection was another critical piece that the Friends of Cedar Lake focused on. They thought of all the businesses impacted by the 2008 flood and their crucial role in the community. "It was a battle, but it kind of blows your mind when you think about how this natural disaster with unfathomable loss became such a catalyst to accelerate the growth and investment in the heart of the community," she says. 

With a community already engaged in projects surrounding Cedar Lake, and another group focused on building a nearby bridge, ConnectCR was formed. It's now recognized as the most significant private-public investment that our city has ever had. Wyrick says, "I've never seen the city embrace a grassroots effort like this one. It was essential to a lot of people."