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Meander fishing event lures eager anglers
By kristine gill
mineral ridge
It took only three days and one advertisement to solicit applications for 1,000 people hoping to fish at Meander Reservoir during public fishing Saturday.
Larry Ragozine, 51, of Niles was one of the first to respond to a Vindicator ad that ran in the Sept. 14 issue of the paper.
“I’m all jacked up about it,” Ragozine said.
Ragozine learned of the event through a friend, and the two bought copies of The Vindicator to get applications, which they sent in Sept. 14.
The Mahoning Valley Sanitary District decided to allow public access to the pristine waters from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday because of the turnout at a similar event in 2007.
“I think it’s a good thing,” Ragozine said of the event. “It’s real nice that they do it.”
Thomas Holloway, chief engineer at MVSD, said the water is typically closed to public access to protect the supply.
“We try to keep people out of the reservoir because it’s a drinking- water source,” Holloway said. “We try to keep people and materials from entering the reservoir so we have high-quality water.”
Brenda Duffett, assistant to the treasurer at MVSD, said the reservoir is patrolled daily to keep would-be fishers out.
Duffett said applicants were allowed to indicate up to two guests they wished to bring to the event. Those guests on each application were included in the 1,000 people allowed to the event.
Duffett said guests will be broken up in time slots to avoid overcrowding at the designated fishing area on shore that day. There will be 300 guests per two-hour time slots Saturday.
Guests are not permitted to bring boats, but Holloway said the first 20 whose applications were received will be treated to a guided boat tour.
“They’ll be out there for 45 minutes riding around to see the layout of the reservoir,” Holloway said, adding that 240 people have registered for tours of the facility to see what’s involved in the processing of water.
Nathan Orr, 31, of Howland is one of the first 20 whose applications was received for fishing and the boat tour.
“I definitely wanted to fish there,” said Orr, who usually fishes Mosquito Lake about three times a week during the summer.
Duffett said a small cleanup will take place after the event Saturday to take care of any garbage left behind by guests. She said cleanup after 2007’s event was minimal but necessary with the new influx of visitors.