Lake Carmel (New York)
Encyclopedia
Lake Carmel is located in the Town of Kent
, New York
, United States
. It takes its name from nearby Carmel
, and in turn the community surrounding the lake
, which accounts for much of Kent's population, is named for it.
It was created by developers in the early 20th century by damming the Middle Branch of the Croton River
. It is one of the few large bodies of water in Putnam County
not used as a reservoir
by New York City
, but it is still part of the city's water supply since the Middle Branch is impounded into the eponymous reservoir
downstream. Due to increasing development around the lake, the city has helped the community improve its wastewater treatment.
Lake Carmel and its associated community take up the southeast corner of Kent; most of the shoreline is developed and the residential neighborhoods surrounding it go several blocks inland, often gently rising up the surrounding hills, except for the steep, unnamed 1104 feet (336.5 m) peak to the lake's west.
There are two inflow streams, neither named. The one that flows from the north-northwest rises in swamps a half-mile (800 m) the north; the northerly one ultimately rises in Bear Swamp, several miles to the north in the Dutchess County
Town of Beekman
, and then flows through several other lakes and ponds to get to Lake Carmel. The Middle Branch leaves the lake along its eastern shore, to be impounded again two miles (6.4 km) downstream.
Snadbeck Avenue (NY 52
) closely follows the western shore near the northern and central sections of the lake; local roads such as Lakeshore Drive complete the circuit. NY 311
crosses the lake's northern inlet on a short causeway
just before reaching its southern terminus at Route 52. Several other local roads, including Terry Hill Road (Putnam County Route 46), cross the eastern inlet, and Route 52 crosses the southwestern one. Interstate 84
is a mile to the northeast via Route 311, although the lake and the road cannot be seen from each other due to the intervening hills. Route 52 leads to Carmel a mile (1.6 km) to the south.
s and cottages meant to be weekend or summer homes for middle-income families, selling them in lavish ads in the New York Daily Mirror
. This continued through the 1940s. Eventually, 5,400 homes were built in the three square miles (8 km²) around the lake, accounting for on-third of the town's housing stock.
In the years after the war, as automobile access to the region from the city increased with the opening of first the Taconic State Parkway
and then Interstate 684
, Lake Carmel became one of the earliest exurbs, home to more and more people year-round. The original cottages were expanded and winterized for this purpose.
As a result of the increasing, clustered development in the region, by 1999 the lake had attracted a large enough population of Canada geese to become a nuisance. Since they could not legally be hunted or shot due to the close proximity of dwellings, the town tried various means to control the population such as egg treatment and growing a lake buffer. It finally settled on rounding them up during molting season, when their ability to fly is limited, and slaughtering them. The meat was distributed to poor people as food. At that time it was only the second such time that action had been taken by a community in the Northeast
.
Human-generated pollution of the lake and, by extension, New York City's watershed, also increased. Local communities resisted pressure from the city to install sewage treatment
plants until the late 1990s, when more of those communities were relying on city water to handle their rapid development. In 2000 the city and the county reached a deal to build a plant to handle sewage from the many homes around the lake whose original septic systems were failing, and divert it to the Hudson River
. Four years later the city also helped the town and county install stormwater control units along Route 52.
, boating
, fishing
(and ice fishing
in winter), is restricted to residents with permits or their guests.
Kent, New York
Kent is a town in Putnam County, New York, United States. The population was 14,009 at the 2000 census. The name is that of an early settler family. The town is the north-central part of the Putnam County. Many of the lakes are reservoirs for New York City....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It takes its name from nearby Carmel
Carmel Hamlet, New York
Carmel Hamlet is the seat of Putnam County, New York, United States. It is a hamlet located in the Town of Carmel. As of the 2000 census, the population was 5,650....
, and in turn the community surrounding the lake
Lake Carmel, New York
Lake Carmel is a hamlet located in the Town of Kent in Putnam County, New York. As of the 2000 census, the population was 8,663....
, which accounts for much of Kent's population, is named for it.
It was created by developers in the early 20th century by damming the Middle Branch of the Croton River
Croton River
The Croton River is a river in southern New York that begins where the East and West Branches of the Croton River meet a little way downstream from the Croton Falls Reservoir...
. It is one of the few large bodies of water in Putnam County
Putnam County, New York
Putnam County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York, in the lower Hudson River Valley. Putnam county formed in 1812, when it detached from Dutchess County. , the population was 99,710. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. The county seat is the hamlet of Carmel...
not used as a reservoir
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
by New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, but it is still part of the city's water supply since the Middle Branch is impounded into the eponymous reservoir
Middle Branch Reservoir
Middle Branch Reservoir is among the 12 reservoirs in New York City's Croton watershed. It is located in the Town of Southeast in Putnam County, 35 miles north of the city....
downstream. Due to increasing development around the lake, the city has helped the community improve its wastewater treatment.
Geography
The lake is elongated in shape, longer along a north-south axis than it is wide, reflecting its artificial origins and its location in one of the valleys in a generally hilly area. There are two narrower inlets corresponding to the inflow streams at the north and northeast corners. A smaller inlet on the southwest corner bends slightly to the north, where it becomes swamps.Lake Carmel and its associated community take up the southeast corner of Kent; most of the shoreline is developed and the residential neighborhoods surrounding it go several blocks inland, often gently rising up the surrounding hills, except for the steep, unnamed 1104 feet (336.5 m) peak to the lake's west.
There are two inflow streams, neither named. The one that flows from the north-northwest rises in swamps a half-mile (800 m) the north; the northerly one ultimately rises in Bear Swamp, several miles to the north in the Dutchess County
Dutchess County, New York
Dutchess County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York, in the state's Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. The 2010 census lists the population as 297,488...
Town of Beekman
Beekman, New York
Beekman is a town in Dutchess County, New York, United States. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined Statistical Area. The population was 11,452 at the 2000...
, and then flows through several other lakes and ponds to get to Lake Carmel. The Middle Branch leaves the lake along its eastern shore, to be impounded again two miles (6.4 km) downstream.
Snadbeck Avenue (NY 52
New York State Route 52
New York State Route 52 is a long state highway in the southeastern part of New York in the United States. It generally runs from west to east, beginning at the Pennsylvania state line in the Delaware River near Narrowsburg, crossing the Hudson River on the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge, and ending...
) closely follows the western shore near the northern and central sections of the lake; local roads such as Lakeshore Drive complete the circuit. NY 311
New York State Route 311
New York State Route 311 is a state highway located entirely within Putnam County, New York, United States. The highway begins at NY 52 in Lake Carmel, and intersects Interstate 84 shortly thereafter...
crosses the lake's northern inlet on a short causeway
Causeway
In modern usage, a causeway is a road or railway elevated, usually across a broad body of water or wetland.- Etymology :When first used, the word appeared in a form such as “causey way” making clear its derivation from the earlier form “causey”. This word seems to have come from the same source by...
just before reaching its southern terminus at Route 52. Several other local roads, including Terry Hill Road (Putnam County Route 46), cross the eastern inlet, and Route 52 crosses the southwestern one. Interstate 84
Interstate 84 in New York
Interstate 84 is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs from Dunmore, Pennsylvania, to Sturbridge, Massachusetts, in the Eastern United States. In New York, I-84 extends from the Pennsylvania state line at Port Jervis to the Connecticut state line east of Brewster...
is a mile to the northeast via Route 311, although the lake and the road cannot be seen from each other due to the intervening hills. Route 52 leads to Carmel a mile (1.6 km) to the south.
History
In the late 19th century, Putnam County's lakes had become one of many places where city residents went on hot summer weekends. Brothers Warren and Arthur Smadbeck were developers who decided to create more. They bought failing farms in the area in 1928 and built the dam to create the lake. Around it they built small bungalowBungalow
A bungalow is a type of house, with varying meanings across the world. Common features to many of these definitions include being detached, low-rise , and the use of verandahs...
s and cottages meant to be weekend or summer homes for middle-income families, selling them in lavish ads in the New York Daily Mirror
New York Daily Mirror
The New York Daily Mirror was an American morning tabloid newspaper first published on June 24, 1924, in New York City by the William Randolph Hearst organization as a contrast to their mainstream broadsheets, the Evening Journal and New York American, later consolidated into the New York Journal...
. This continued through the 1940s. Eventually, 5,400 homes were built in the three square miles (8 km²) around the lake, accounting for on-third of the town's housing stock.
In the years after the war, as automobile access to the region from the city increased with the opening of first the Taconic State Parkway
Taconic State Parkway
The Taconic State Parkway , is a divided highway between Kensico Dam and Chatham, the longest parkway in the U.S. state of New York. It follows a generally northward route midway between the Hudson River and the Connecticut and Massachusetts state lines...
and then Interstate 684
Interstate 684
Interstate 684 is a 28.4 mile-long north–south Interstate Highway in the states of New York and Connecticut. The highway connects I-84 with I-287 and the Hutchinson River Parkway, primarily serving commuter traffic to and from the northern suburbs of the New York metropolitan area...
, Lake Carmel became one of the earliest exurbs, home to more and more people year-round. The original cottages were expanded and winterized for this purpose.
As a result of the increasing, clustered development in the region, by 1999 the lake had attracted a large enough population of Canada geese to become a nuisance. Since they could not legally be hunted or shot due to the close proximity of dwellings, the town tried various means to control the population such as egg treatment and growing a lake buffer. It finally settled on rounding them up during molting season, when their ability to fly is limited, and slaughtering them. The meat was distributed to poor people as food. At that time it was only the second such time that action had been taken by a community in the Northeast
Northeastern United States
The Northeastern United States is a region of the United States as defined by the United States Census Bureau.-Composition:The region comprises nine states: the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont; and the Mid-Atlantic states of New...
.
Human-generated pollution of the lake and, by extension, New York City's watershed, also increased. Local communities resisted pressure from the city to install sewage treatment
Sewage treatment
Sewage treatment, or domestic wastewater treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater and household sewage, both runoff and domestic. It includes physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants...
plants until the late 1990s, when more of those communities were relying on city water to handle their rapid development. In 2000 the city and the county reached a deal to build a plant to handle sewage from the many homes around the lake whose original septic systems were failing, and divert it to the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
. Four years later the city also helped the town and county install stormwater control units along Route 52.
Recreation
The town owns the lake, and those portions of its shoreline not under private ownership. Access to the beaches, or to the water for swimmingSwimming (sport)
Swimming is a sport governed by the Fédération Internationale de Natation .-History: Competitive swimming in Europe began around 1800 BCE, mostly in the form of the freestyle. In 1873 Steve Bowyer introduced the trudgen to Western swimming competitions, after copying the front crawl used by Native...
, boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
, fishing
Angling
Angling is a method of fishing by means of an "angle" . The hook is usually attached to a fishing line and the line is often attached to a fishing rod. Fishing rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a mechanism for storing, retrieving and paying out the line. The hook itself...
(and ice fishing
Ice fishing
Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice anglers may sit on the stool in the open on a frozen lake, or in a heated cabin on the ice, some with bunks and amenities.-Locations:It is a popular pastime...
in winter), is restricted to residents with permits or their guests.