City of Hastings, UBBNRD, and LBNRD to Host Public Event

HASTINGS, NE (January 16, 2024) – The City of Hastings, invites the community to attend a public open house as part of its Lake Hastings Water Quality Management Plan. The open house will be held at the Hastings Municipal Airport (3300 W. 12th Street, Hastings, NE) on Tuesday, February 13, 2024, from 4:00 – 6:00 p.m. All members of the public are invited to participate in the meeting. No formal presentation will be made, and attendees may drop in anytime. 

The meeting is part of public involvement steps to inform the development of a watershed management plan for Lake Hastings and its contributing watershed. The project team will be on hand to answer attendees’ questions. The informational displays and handouts will cover known water quality issues in the lake, sources of pollution, and recommended management practices being considered to improve water quality in Lake Hastings and its watershed. Practices are anticipated to consist of agricultural best management practices (BMPs), urban stormwater BMPs, and in-lake improvements. This project is partially funded with support from the City, Upper Big Blue Natural Resources District (UBBNRD), Little Blue Natural Resources District (LBNRD), and Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy (NDEE). 

Prior to this open house two other meetings were held in 2023 as part of the planning process. The first community meeting was held in April 2024 at the Parks and Recreation Building. At this meeting, members of the public heard a formal presentation from the City. This presentation covered topics of water quality issues in the watershed area, sources of pollution, impact to watershed ecosystems and wildlife, and potential improvements being considered by the City and NRDs. The second meeting was a visioning workshop, which was held in November 2023, with a stakeholder group consisting of city residents, lake users, recreational group representatives, Lake Hastings residents, farmers/producers in the Lake Hastings watershed area, and other community leaders.  At this workshop, stakeholders were given the opportunity to consider potential improvements and lake amenities and design their own future Lake Hastings.  

This open house is the final community meeting planned as part of this planning effort. The project team anticipates finalizing the watershed plan in spring 2024.   

Visit https://bit.ly/46g9Xyr for more information about this project.