RELATED: Dayton lake, former park site, to reel people in again

Volunteers, including residents of the nearby Lakeview and Pineview neighborhoods and local unions members, over the course of six months worked to clean up the shoreline and areas around the lake.

They’ve cleared out honeysuckle, removed tons of litter and even discovered a car in the lake that was removed.

The renewal of the lake has reached another level with the addition of a floating fishing pier and two new iron benches.

Dayton City Commissioner Chris Shaw, Ohio AFL-CIO President Tim Burga and Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley stand on the new fishing pier on Lakeside Lake.

The new amenities will reconnect local residents to the spring-fed lake, which continued to be used by some fishing enthusisats even when it was in awful condition, officials say.

The new pier and benches, and the labor needed to build and install them, have been donated by the Ohio AFL-CIO, the Union Sportsmen’s Alliance and the Ironworkers Local 290. The lake cleanup and restoration was selected as the alliance’s and Ohio AFL-CIO’s annual conservation project.

The initial costs of the first and second phases of the project is about $150,000.