AJ Jolly Park opened in the 1960s, and Campbell County began ramping up recreational activities roughly 10 years ago, but a true lake management plan has never been in place.
AJ Jolly Lake is a 200-acre fishing and recreational lake within the 1,000-acre AJ Jolly Park. The Campbell County Fiscal Court approved the restoration’s first phase, which will be conducting a hydrographic study and/or an engineering study to identify and recommend lake restoration measures that will serve the lake to optimum depth, water quality and recreational opportunities for years to come.
“It’s been kind of—I don’t want to say totally reactive, but you see weeds growing up on the side of the lake, and people like to fish there, so you cut them down, things like that,” Assistant Campbell County Administrator Kim Serra said. “So, now we’re really trying to take a more comprehensive look at the whole area and decide and hopefully find out what kind of interventions we need to do to get everything back in a good place.”
The county also plans to do preventative maintenance of the lake to make sure that it’s still around for all the kayaking, boating and fishing in the future.
“The lake is the heart of AJ Jolly Park,” Campbell County Planning and Zoning Director Cindy Minter said. “Establishing a long-term operating plan for this 70-plus-year-old lake can help us ensure the lake’s sustained health and recreational potential for years to come.”
Serra said phase one is estimated to conclude sometime in late June to early July, though four total phases aren’t expected to be completed until the next fiscal year.
The county listed the lake restoration as one of its legislative priorities this year and requested $10 million from the state. The full scope of the project after phase one is contingent upon the county receiving the $10 million. However, Serra said she anticipates the county to do some restoration and some of the lake maintenance plan regardless.
“Even though we could do something with this lake without those funds, we want the legislator to know that we need and want that to do our best possible job,” Serra said. “So we can definitely do phase one without any assistance, but then after that, depending on what the results are, we would need some help funding.”
The total cost of phase one is $45,500 and is included in the fiscal year 2024 budget. Serra said the total cost of the project should be determined after the study of the lake is completed in phase one.
The other phases of the project include:
Phase two: If restoration is needed, the consultant will recommend appropriate depth restoration for long-term sustainability and the best method while considering cost and environmental impact, the volume of sediment to be removed, the best method for removal, and recommendation for best use of sediment based on an analysis of the sediment composition.
Phase three: Cost estimate for recommended measures.
Phase four: Ongoing lake management plan so that after any recommended restoration efforts are complete, AJ Jolly Lake will be maintained as a primary contact recreational lake well into the future. The lake management plan will include recommendations to prevent future sedimentation, recommendations to improve overall water quality and fish habitat, and recommendations for shoreline improvement and erosion prevention.
When the county reaches the end of all four phases, Serra said some new features could be added to the lake.
She said some examples of what could happen are creating an island in the middle of that lake that people could kayak to and adding new bridges or walkway features around the lake.
“We probably will end up with some new features it just kind of depends on what the recommendations are and how we can kind of use those issues to create some other nicer areas,” Serra said.
Once the lake is back to its prime health, Serra said the county would also continue fish restocking efforts, such as they did in September 2023 with bass. She said any lake restocking must first be approved by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife.
She said the health of the water in the lake is important not only for the fish but also because they use the lake water to irrigate the golf course.
