COMMITTEES

This committee organizes a group of Ten Mile Lake neighbors in late Spring to do highway cleanup for the 17 miles that surround Ten Mile Lake. The Cass County Highway Department provides the trash bags and fluorescent vests, as well as provides trash pickup after the event. In 2026, the committee launched a new effort to engage more volunteers using an online sign up that was very successful and resulted in a fun group effort with more than 40 participants. Watch TMLA social media and membership emails for sign up information each Spring.

It has been a long-standing practice of the TMLA Board of Directors to ask the immediate past president to act as ex-officio member of the board. Our belief is that there is value in having the past president attend for two years to help with any transition matters and to provide history and perspective on issues that may come before the board.

This committee was formed as an ad hoc committee at the July 17, 2026 TMLA board meeting in recognition of the board’s need for targeted help in the areas of retention and organization of records; optimized use of technology to improve member experience and ease of use; and to support a more deliberate orientation of new board members. Its complete function and duration are still to be determined. Thanks go to Dave Rassmussen and Allison Hackenmiller for agreeing to help with this effort. Potential duties include:

• Working with the Secretary and Treasurer to electronically post and file all relevant board documents.

• Reviewing and culling records – both in electronic and paper format – that no longer need to be retained.

• Developing a system for posting and filing that can be readily passed on to future successors to the Secretary’s and Treasurer’s positions.

• Working with the Nominating Committee and President to welcome and orient new board members, including training them to access all relevant electronic files.

• Reviewing current website content and recommending deletions and appropriate labeling.

• Reviewing current dues and donations procedures for ease of use and accurate data flow.

• Other tasks as the board deems necessary.

Our committee consists of eight members. We typically meet twice a summer. Our budget is nominal – usually a donation to Northern Waters Land Trust and perhaps small outlays for signage, record access, and the like. Our activities include:

• We have responsibility for the conservation easement parcels owned by the TMLA. That includes participation in the annual conservation monitoring conducted by the Minnesota Land Trust, signage at those properties, and maintaining history and records of the acquisitions.

• We also work in conjunction with the Northern Waters Land Trust to identify potential properties in our watershed that are candidates for conservation easements, and create communication plans to connect with those property owners.

• We coordinate with the Cass County Soil and Water Conservation District on its outreach and funding activities for shoreline restoration and protection, and communicate those programs to the TMLA membership.

• We develop newsletter articles on conservation topics such as easements and shoreline stewardship.

The E & E Committee has a broad mandate to monitor and preserve the state of the lake and its immediate environs, as well as educating the TMLA membership about such things. The things that we do on a regular basis are listed below:

• Monthly lake water sampling and analysis from six locations around the lake.

• Regular (weekly to monthly) Secchi disk readings from several locations around the lake.

• Weekly temperature/dissolved oxygen profiles from the surface to 100 feet at the deepest part of the lake.

• Biennial collection of well water samples from cabins around the lake.

• Collection of underwater video and aerial drone surveys of the lake.

• Monitoring the lake for the presence of AIS (aquatic invasive species)

• Working and interacting with various governmental officials about matters concerning the lake.

• Monitoring the status of the Ten Mile fishery.

• Educating the TMLA membership about important aspects of the lake’s environment.

The Finance Advisory Committee provides financial guidance and oversight to the TMLA Board of Directors. It supports the Board in promoting sound financial management, long-term financial sustainability, transparency, and responsible stewardship of the Association’s resources.

The Committee's work aims to strengthen the Association's financial health and accountability while supporting its mission to protect, preserve, and enhance the lake.

This committee researches, records, and files past and present events that affect the lake and its residences. The committee also writes an article each quarter for publishing in the TMLA newsletter. We have also had the responsibility for collecting family histories and editing them for publication in two different volumes of Ten Mile Lake history. Members of our committee also store, sell, deliver, and/or ship these books when purchased.

Our committee is responsible for installing hazard-marking buoys in the spring and removing them in the fall. We are also responsible for the maintenance and winter storage of the TMLA-owned buoys. We have organized Watercraft Operator Training for kids 12 – 18 in July for the past 26 years. We also provide current information to the members of the lake association regarding current boating regulations and, as appropriate, particular lake safety issues.

Our primary responsibility is to place artificial nesting platforms (also known as ANP’s) around the lake in areas that have historically supported successful loon nesting and chick hatches. We place these platforms as soon as possible after the ice leaves our bays and remove them again in the fall. We conduct monthly Loon Watcher Surveys from May through October and report the numbers of adult, chick, and adolescent loons to the MN DNR. We report to the general membership on the number of loons and loon chicks through quarterly newsletter articles, social media posts, and at the Annual Meeting. We were very happy to have developed and placed our first Loon Cam in 2026. We also investigate and respond to reports of dead or injured loons and make ourselves available to answer questions that TMLA members might have about the loon population on our lake.

The Ten Mile Lake Association is a volunteer-driven and member-serving organization. Our Membership Committee seeks to engage TMLA members in order to achieve our mission and enhance a sense of community for all Ten Milers. From collecting and maintaining member data, processing dues and donations, updating our website, publishing a quarterly newsletter, and organizing social events, the Membership Committee is a robust part of the TMLA with many fun opportunities to get involved. 

Whether you are an outgoing person or prefer to volunteer behind the scenes, there is a place for you on the TMLA Membership Committee.

Within 30 days of each year’s Annual Meeting, the President appoints a Nominating Committee consisting of four members of the board who are not up for re-election at the next Annual Meeting. The committee is charged with keeping records of each current board member’s renewal status; conferring with those whose term is up for renewal about their wish to continue to serve on the board; and presenting those names for a vote at the Annual Meeting. This committee also maintains a written record of all potential candidates considered by it for election to the Board of Directors and meets as necessary throughout the summer to develop a slate of candidates necessary to fill open positions. This slate is then presented to the TMLA Board of Directors at the board meeting proceeding the Annual Meeting.  It is the job of the chair to present these candidates to the general membership at the Annual Meeting and to ask for a vote to approve their election to the TMLA Board of Directors.

We cooperate with the MN DNR to monitor, record, and track the water level in Ten Mile Lake by means of biweekly water level readings. We support efforts to mitigate high or low water levels as resources and technology permit. We report water levels at every TMLA board meeting, in the quarterly TMLA newsletters, and at each Annual Meeting.