Who pays for duck pond cleanup?

Don Taylor scrapes muck from the bottom of the Fairfield Pike duck pond. (T-G Photo by David Melson) [Order this photo]

Remains of a smelly, mucky mess fill a Shelbyville pond where, until recently, ducks swam and children played on its banks.

Repairs, of a sort, are underway at what's known as the "duck pond" on Fairfield Pike at Hickory Drive. But behind the scene lurks the battle of who foots the bill.

The pond's owners, Roger and Paralee Williams, insist the city of Shelbyville is liable for part of the costs. City Manager Ed Craig says the city can't legally work on private property because it doesn't own the pond.

Joe Wright scoops up muck scraped by a dozer from the pond. (T-G Photo by David Melson) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

Mossy mess

Surface moss regularly covers the pond during tranquil, dry summer months. State agricultural personnel told the Williamses two years ago there was little that could be done except to try and keep the pond aerated.

But the pond, due to what the Williamses were told is a leak in a dam, filled with an orange, mossy substance by mid-spring this year.

May brought low water levels and, eventually, a sizeable fish kill.

"A hole is leaking where the city built the dam," Paralee Williams said. "We can't keep the water level high enough to prevent the moss."

Big question

Craig says previous owners of the pond, not the city, built the small dam under the roadway on the south end of the Hickory Drive 'Y' intersection, which surrounds the pond on three sides where the road meets Fairfield Pike.

The area around the dam was strengthened several years ago, before the Williamses bought the pond and a nearby home, when the intersection was widened.

Water stood several inches deep Thursday in a ditch on the other side of the dam.

"There's always water standing on that side of the road," Williams said.

"(Shelbyville's public works director) Mark Clanton said the city could repair it but Ed Craig said they can't since it's on private property."

The Williamses say the city owns a 25-foot right-of-way from Fairfield Pike. The dam is within that right of way, Roger Williams said.

"It's simply not city property," Craig said. "The fact that part of the overflow is within the roadway doesn't make it city property.

"Everyone appreciates that duck pond and its amenities. It's just not city property and never has been."

Money pit

Whoever repairs the dam may face a costly struggle.

"We've been told to repair the crack in the dam they may have to go under it," Williams said.

Joe Wright holds the scoop as Mary Wright, left, Brooke Taylor and Shana Taylor look for surviving fish and turtles, which were cleaned and moved to another pond. (T-G Photo by David Melson) [Click to enlarge] [Order this photo]

The couple has been working on their own, with some city help, to improve conditions at the pond.

"The city did bring in a pump, and we called Don Taylor to bring another one," Roger Williams said.

"(County) Mayor (Eugene) Ray looked at it and said if the county could help, to let him know. Several city council members and Mark Clanton said they wanted to help."

Craig confirmed that several council members had been in contact with the Williamses.

County help may arrive in the form of the pond being pumped by Volunteer Fire Services Inc. as part of a monthly training exercise, Roger Williams said he was told by Ray.

Relief effort

Repair work was well underway Thursday as Taylor operated a dozer scooping gray, slimy muck from the pond. Joe Wright stood on the bank with a net, spotting fish and, with the help of his and Taylor's children, scooping surviving catfish and turtles to safety.

"They're stockpiling muck to the edge of the pond to dry, then hauling it off," Roger Williams said. "We're moving surviving catfish to the other pond."

The "other pond" to which he referred is across the north side of Hickory Drive from the main pond, next to the Williamses' home. It appears clean and well-filled, with no moss. The locally-famous ducks have migrated to that pond, Williams said.

The ponds were constructed as rock quarries at least 70 years ago, according to Williams.

"It's been here since whenever Fairfield Pike was built. I've been told it was 1938 or earlier. These were quarries originally built to get rock for Fairfield Pike."