Preserving the Beauty and Natural Resources of Lily Lake
Supporting ecology and enjoyment of our precious Lily Lake resources into the future.
Lily Lake is a 212 acre lake with a maximum depth of 24 feet and is located in southwestern Forest County, Wisconsin. The watershed basin covers approximately 1000 acres and is sustained by incoming water from natural springs, rain water runoff, and the incoming streams from surrounding Roberts, Jungle and Spring Lake.
Lily Lake Dam Project
We Need Your Help!
Please support our efforts! With the fragile state of the existing dam we need continuing support from everyone to maintain the precious resource we call Lily Lake. If the dam were to fail, it is estimated that water levels would drop 5'-6' making the river and bays unnavigable destroying the fish biology and ecosystem of the Lily Lake watershed.
History
The Lily Lake Dam was authorized in 1901 for the purpose of log driving in the early days of Northern Wisconsin logging.
Years of Service
The Lily River dam had been continously maintained throughout the years by local property owners and residents. At one time the dam provided hydro electric power. The current dam was reconstructed in 1975. The Town of Nashville took ownership in the early 1970's and has since maintained the dam.
At Risk Dam
A required periodic inspection in 2014 showed that the current dam has degraded and has outlived its previous intended use. Since its original construction, new standards are required for dam safety. The new dam design will meet or exceed the new safety standards, reduce maintenence and provide for more consistent water levels beneficial to the ecology of the lake, river and watershed systems.
The Lily Lake District was created in 2022 to assist the Town of Nashville, Wisconsin with financial support to replace the aging and outdated Lily River Dam.
Lily Lake Gallery
Explore the beauty and ecology of our cherished Lily Lake from photos submitted by friends and neighbors of Lily Lake.
These photos may not be copied, reproduced or used in any form without the written consent of the submitter.
Lily Lake District Information
2025 Meeting Dates
March 22, 2025 Noon, Commissioners Meeting
May 17, 2025 Annual Meeting
August 16, 2025 Commissioners Meeting
November 15, 2025 Commissioners Meeting
News
12/22/2024
The Nashville Town Board met on December 18th, 2024 with Flambeau Engineering owner, Tiffiney Kleczewki and WDNR Dam Safety Specialist, Forrest Van Asten to review the latest and hopefully final plans for the reconstruction of the Lily River Dam. This latest design originated from a request the town had made in September 2023 to simplify the structure for ease of construction and to provide a more economical and financially feasable approach to the WDNR order to replace the current aging dam. At this meeting, the Town Board made a motion and approved the preliminary plans. The approval will keep the project moving forward to continue the process of WDNR review and finalizing the engineering drawings for bidding. In order to keep the cost of the replacement dam under control the town is requesting to perform some of the contracting and work internally. At this point we have no idea what the cost may be until we receive some feedback from contractors capable of this type of construction.
Previous meeting minutes and reports
(click to download)
1/29/2025
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resource has sent the Town of Nashville an executive order (click on WDNR Order) stating that because of the deteriorating conditions of the dam, we will not be allowed to manage the water level with boards in the dam as we have previously done.
Progress is being made with the Town Board requesting finalization of the engineering drawings and plan details with next step going to WDNR review and approval and then out for bidding.