Since 1937, the Springville Community Trout Pond has been a recreational, environmental, historical and social asset to the Springville community. Most importantly, the pond has been a favorite fishing hole for ages 3 to 103.  The 3.8-acre property formerly housed a 6,000 fish hatchery. The hatchery played a role stocking Brook Trout, Rainbow Trout and Salmon within regional streams and creeks.

The beginnings of the pond renovation are now visible from North Buffalo Street.  After a 100-year flood event in 1998, the pond’s fish habitat and hatchery suffered extensive damage and limited the public’s enjoyment.   The pond and property have continued to gradually decline and now a new partnership is looking to turn that around.

The Springville Field and Stream Club is collaborating with Green Springville to kick off the Springville Community Trout Pond Renovation campaign.  A team of volunteers has developed a multi-phase plan. The project includes restoration of the Brook Trout hatchery and brooding facility, as well as dredge the pond to reestablish a quality fish habitat, and to develop the south end of the pond to make it more accessible to the public.

In addition to the restoration, the project will also include construction of a classroom facility promoting fish brooding, aquaculture, and conservation. Work has already begun on the first phase, taking the important steps to eliminate existing sources of invasive aquatic plant and pathogen species, as well as manage sedimentation from an adjacent pond which flows into the Trout Pond. A drainage bypass has been installed at the South End of the pond to achieve this goal.  Next, a wheelchair accessible concrete fishing pier will be installed, along with a gazebo, and an eventual pedestrian and bicycle access to the proposed Erie-Cattaraugus Rail Trail.*

While this project represents an ambitious undertaking, the team has established relationships with organizations, such as:

• Erie County Soil and Water Soil Conservation Service,
• Erie County Highway Department,
• Springville-Griffith Community Education Foundation (SGCEF),
• a number of local and regional contractors,
• New York State Department of Environmental Conservation,
• U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service,
• Erie-Cattaraugus Rail Trail,
• Erie County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs, Inc., and
• numerous volunteers within the Green Springville and Springville Field and Stream Club.

The team has been writing grant proposals and is now scheduling presentations with interested organizations.

The Springville Field and Stream and Green Springville welcome anyone interested in supporting the project or simply learning more about the plans.  For all inquiries, please call (716) 599-0017, or visit Green Springville and Springville Field and Stream, Inc. on Facebook.  Follow the project’s progress on Facebook by liking and following its page.

You can donate to the project through PayPal HERE  Be sure to add a note designating your donation for the Trout Pond Project.

*This project is made possible with funds from the Expanding Access to Arts Funding in WNY, a regrant program of New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by the Cullen Foundation.