About Us

We are an association made up of a group of residents along Lake Jefferson and others in our area who care about the preservation of the lake. Our mission is to save the lake by repairing the dam and conserving and restoring the environmental, recreational, and flood management qualities generously provided to us by Lake Jefferson for the benefit of all residents of Jeffersonville, NY.

Lake Jefferson was created by a dam built in 1927 so the village bathers could romp at and recreate in the shadow of the Lake Jeff Hotel, one of the crown jewels of Jeffersonville until its closing in 1998. Four years later, in 2002, a fire burned the hotel to the ground.

During a severe flood in 2006, the spillway face at Lake Jeff was partially shorn away. Following the flood and state of emergency, a costly and extensive repair was done to the dam. The sheer force of the flood waters had scoured out a cave underneath the toe of the dam spillway; it was considered the priority one danger. The repair took place over two construction seasons and involved divers, drillers, industrial-sized pump-out operations above and below the spillway, professional engineers, government engineers, dozens of volunteers, two cement mixers pumping concrete from the Swiss Hill side and Route 52 side, and many thousands of dollars in materials and concrete. This was just one of a number of very significant and costly repairs and spillway resurfacing that have taken place over the life of the dam and spillway. And unfortunately, further costly repairs are needed.

In order to ensure the survival of Lake Jefferson, please visit our donation page and consider a tax-deductible contribution. We cannot do it without your support.