Following a public hearing, the Directors of Robert E. Lee Soil & Water Conservation District (RELSWCD) determined in January 2018 that there was need for the formation of a Watershed Improved District at Timberlake in the interest of public health, safety, and welfare.

In accordance with Code of Virginia §10.1-628, a vote of the residents and landowners on the proposed WID was taken—and passed by a majority in November 2019.

The proposed WID was approved by the Robert E. Lee Water & Soil Conservation District in December 2019, and subsequently approved by its oversight body, the Virginia Soil and Water Conservation Board, in
February 2020.

The Circuit Court of Campbell County, Virginia, granted the Petition to Levy Tax and Incur Indebtedness for the Timberlake WID in May 2020, thereby completing the formation of the Timberlake WID as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

The Court Order, signed by Campbell County Judge John T. Cook, recognizes the authority of the WID to “levy a tax to be used for the purpose of constructing improvements to check erosion, provide drainage, collect sediment, and/or stabilize the runoff of the surface water with the Timberlake WID boundaries.”

Legal Description of Timberlake WID

All Campbell County, Virginia properties having shoreline on Timberlake, Buffalo Creek, Waterlick Creek, and Brown's Creek that are located inside the perimeter created by Timberlake Drive, South Timberlake Drive, and Old Plantation Drive, inclusive of the Timberlake Dam and the emergency and primary spillways, a territory that is contiguous and all one watershed. Map of TimberlakeWID

Governance of the WID

Timberlake WID (TWID) is governed by the
Robert E. Lee Water & Soil Conservation District.   

TWID was established under VA code
Title 10.1 – Chapter 6, Articles 614 – 635

The Timberlake WID and its three appointed trustees work directly with the Robert E. Lee Soil & Water Conservation District to plan and execute projects to protect the lake and promote soil and water conservation within Timberlake WID. 

Conservation and Restoration

Waters from the surrounding 5.4 square mile watershed flows through Timberlake and exits into the Buffalo Creek basin. Storm water runoff and upstream creek bed erosion has deposited significant silt in Timberlake over the last twenty-five years.

A bathymetric study (digital map of the underwater topography) was taken in 2017 to estimate the volume and location of sediment deposited in the lake. Significant volume has accumulated in each of the three major coves where the streams enter and has flowed toward the main body of the lake such that the lake has loss both depth and acreage since its creation.

The first project undertaken in 2021 by the Timberlake WID was to collect and remove large masses of silt carried into the lake and accumulated over years of upstream land development in Bedford and Campbell County. Approximately 17,500 cubic yards of sediment in five cove areas were collected and removed to increase the depth in the cove areas to approximately five feet. 

Financing and Operations

The initial approved project in 2021 was financed by a Real Estate tax paid by the landowners with property that touches the lake or one of the creeks that feed the lake. Taxes are collected by Campbell County at the same time as the annual property tax, then disbursed to the WID Trustees to make payment on project expenses approved by the directors of RELSWCD. 

Total budget for the project included cost of site preparation, cost of dredging, administrative and operating costs, and an accrual for maintenance dredging.