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Lake Norman, the largest reservoir in the Catawba-Wateree system, is located northwest of Charlotte in Mecklenburg, Iredell, Catawba and Lincoln counties, North Carolina. Lake Norman has a surface area of about 31,984 acres and 591.6 shoreline miles at full pond elevation of 760 feet MSL.
Table 3.5-1 summarizes the shoreline classification for Lake Norman, based on the July 2001 SMP maps.
Table3.5-2 Lake Norman Shallow Water Habitat Shoreline Classifications (Miles)
Within the Lake Norman Study Area, there are 455 previously recorded cultural resources including 34 architectural resources and 421 archaeological sites. The architectural resources include 23 single dwellings, a church with a cemetery, 2 other cemeteries, 2 agricultural complexes, a mill, a bridge, a commercial building, a mill village, a school, and a commercial district. The architectural resources date from the eighteenth through the twentieth centuries, although most of the resources date to the nineteenth century. The archeological sites range in date from the Early Archaic through the Historic cultural periods. Approximately one-third of the archaeological sites
are not associated with a specific cultural period. The majority
of the sites have components that date to the Woodland period, and
many contain ceramic and lithic artifacts. Only lithic artifacts
were recovered at the majority of the other sites. There are 41
sites for which we do not have enough data to determine their specific
functions. The integrity of the sites is varied. More than half
of the sites are underwater. Twenty of the architectural resources are listed in the National Register. The single dwellings listed are the Perkins House, the Cornelius House, the Falls-Hobbs House, and the Neill-Turner-Lester House. The other listed resource is the Catawba Historic District. The information on both the archaeological and architectural sites from the state files is being used in preparation of the predictive model to assign the shoreline on Lake Norman either a High, Medium, Low, or No probability for the occurrence of cultural resources. Prior to the completion of the model non-exempt activities such as excavation projects, commercial marina development, and certain conveyance projects will be provided to the appropriate SHPO for review before construction or excavation activity begins within the project boundary. To ensure the potential impact to cultural resources is properly evaluated after completion of the predictive model, Lake Management will review the predictive model for all non-exempt activities. Applicants for all non-exempt lake use permitting activities in medium and high probability areas will be required to consult with the appropriate SHPO regarding their proposal.
Lake Norman Existing Recreational Areas There are 10 developed and 3 undeveloped Duke Power owned public recreational access locations (two are leased to county recreation agencies) on Lake Norman, one state park (Lake Norman State Park, formerly Duke Power State Park), two county owned parks (Jetton Road and Blythe Landing County Parks), two county leased parks (Ramsey Creek and Stumpy Creek), and one city park (Davidson Lake Park). Figure 3.5-1 shows the public recreational access locations. In addition, there are 15 commercial non-residential and 4 commercial residential marinas that provide additional public access to Lake Norman. The following sections describe the Duke Power-owned public access areas, summarize the facilities at the state and county parks, and provide estimates of the number and types of commercial recreational access facilities at Lake Norman.
Existing Duke Power-Owned Public Access Areas The developed Duke Power-owned public access areas provide about 119 acres of land and about 14,669 feet of shoreline frontage of public access at Lake Norman. Combined, the developed access areas have 18 public boat ramps, 7 loading piers, 1 fishing pier and about 553 vehicle/trailer and 62 car parking spaces. Table 3.5-3 summarizes the facilities at the public access areas. The undeveloped access areas provide about 152 acres and 8,350 feet of shoreline frontage for future public recreational development. In the 1994 SMP, Duke Power proposed to improve the Stumpy Creek access area (replace the 1 ramp with 2 new boat ramps, install a loading pier, and expand, light and pave the parking lot), Pinnacle access area (replace the 3 ramps with 5 new boat ramps, replace the pier with 2 new loading piers, and light the parking lot), McCrary Creek access area (replace the 2 ramps with 4 new boat ramps and light and pave the parking lot), Hager Creek access area (replace the ramp with 3 new boat ramps, install a loading pier, and pave and light the parking lot), Long Island access area (relocate the site, install two boat ramps, a loading pier, and pave the site), Little Creek access area (replace the 2 ramps with 2 new boat ramps, install a loading pier, and expand, light, and pave the parking lot), Beattys Ford access area (replace the 3 ramps with 4 new boat ramps, install 2 loading piers and expand, light, and pave the parking lot), and McGuire Fishing area (pave 5 handicapped parking spaces). In addition, Duke Power said it would add 20 acres to the McCrary Creek site (16 acres added), add 10 acres to the Hager Creek site (8 acres added), relocate Long Island to 12 acres (relocated to 29 acres), add 5 acres to the Little Creek site (4 acres added), add 4 acres to the Beattys Ford site (7 acres added) and identify a new undeveloped 87 acre site (this is a new undeveloped 128 acre site). All of the recreation commitments from the 1994 SMP will be completed by the end of 2001. Duke Power also added two additional undeveloped sites with one at Buffalo Shoals (11 acres) and one at Slanting Bridge (13 acres). The NCWRC has entered into a creative partnership with Duke Power for the maintenance and operation of the non-leased access areas. Under this agreement Duke Power pays the NCWRC to maintain the access areas and the NCWRC makes at least the same capital dollar amount available to Duke Power, and agency lessees for the non boat launching portion of the access areas, for improvements that will help the boating public. This agreement is a continuation of a long established partnership with the NCWRC with the added benefit of designated cost sharing capital dollars for access area improvements.
* Vehicle/Trailer parking area. State and County Public Recreational Facilities There is 1 state park and 4 county parks located along the Lake Norman shoreline. Table 3.5-4 summarizes the site acreage, shoreline footage, and recreational facilities provided at the Lake Norman State Park. This facility is located in the northern portion of Lake Norman, and is owned and operated by North Carolina Department of Environmental Health and Natural Resources, Division of Parks and Recreation.
Four county parks, Jetton Park, Blythe Landing, Ramsey Creek Park, and Stumpy Creek Access Area are located along the southern and eastern shoreline of Lake Norman. Jetton Park and Blythe Landing are owned and operated by Mecklenburg County, while Ramsey Creek Park and Stumpy Creek are operated by Mecklenburg County and Iredell County, respectively, on lands under lease from Duke Power. Table 3.5-5 summarizes the key characteristics of these facilities. Existing Commercial and Private Recreational Access In addition to the Duke Power-owned public access areas and the state and county parks, the public can gain access to Lake Norman through both commercial non-residential and commercial residential marinas. Private access to Lake Norman is through private marinas and private piers along the Lake Norman shoreline. Table 3.5-6 summarizes the number and types of public and private commercial non-residential and commercial residential marina facilities. Table 3.5-7 summarizes the estimated number of private piers.
Lake Norman Recreational Use Assessment Visitation figures at the public access areas on Lake Norman were derived based on estimates of the traffic entering the Duke Power-owned public access areas. Total estimated visitation during the 1999 study period for Lake Norman at these sites was 387,400 visits. Figure 3.5-3 shows the distribution of the visitation for each month at the Duke Power-owned Lake Norman public access areas during the 1999 study period. A visit is considered a vehicle or vehicle/trailer entering the site for any part of a day. Table 3.5-8 provides a summary of the estimated recreational visitation based on the traffic counter data for the sampled sites during the 1999 study period. Of the Lake Norman Duke Power-owned access areas, Ramsey Creek, Pinnacle, and Beatties Ford have the greatest amount of use at 19 percent, 17 percent, and 16 percent, respectively, of the total estimated use at the Lake Norman Duke Power-owned access areas. Based on survey data input, the estimated ratio for annual visits to the project area for Survey B respondents (respondents that use both public and private access areas) as compared to Survey C respondents (respondents at the public access areas) was a ratio of 1.3 to 1. The estimated overall recreational visitation for Lake Norman for the 1999 study period totaled 492,146 visits. Click Here to View Full
Lake Norman Boat Carrying Capacity Assessment The overall boat carrying capacity is assessed based on the peak boating use estimates obtained during the flyovers in the 1999 study period. The available boating acreage was adjusted from the base boats per acreage estimate (see Table 3.5-9) by the following factors (Warren and Rea, 1989, as modified):
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