Bonnie Thomson Carter Lake County Board Member promotes real estate fraud & enables pollution of Wooster Lake Lake County, Illinois

Revealed over recent years is Lake County Board Member Bonnie Thomson Carters unlawful use of local government to falsify the status of real estate, including large subdivided properties with legal access to private Wooster Lake.   The real estate fraud began with forged covenants recorded in 2003 at Lake County Recorders Office at the direction of a villages ordinance.  After attorneys began to reveal the scam, Bonnie Carter chose to reinforce that real estate fraud by bullying other lake-adjacent village officials into adopting unlawful extraterritorial ordinances over privately owned Wooster Lake, jurisdiction never had by the villages like Bonnie Carter peddled.  

However the extraterritorial, anti fast-boating ordinance was a stone that killed not just 1 bird, rather 2 birds, both for Bonnie Carters personal benefit at the expense of her constituents and the environment.

As Carter was soliciting for the illegal ordinance behind the backs of the lakes legal property owners in Sep 2005, Carter on record went on a crusade to falsely paint fast-boating as a threat to Wooster Lake and its ecosystem.  When Carter repeatedly lied, she was not only reinforcing the real estate fraud, Carter was also diverting attention away from the real threat to Wooster Lake:  the polluting inputs from upstream.

Compulsive Lying:  Bonnie Carter made and continues to make these wild, unfounded accusations about fast-boating when no study has ever been conducted to validate her accusations.  Mark Pfister a biologist and then Director for Lakes Management of Lake County Health Department- on Oct 31, 2005 was quoted in the Daily Herald of saying: Its a myth fast boating harms plant life and fish.  The (Wooster) lakes ecosystem can easily handle the pressure from boating.. 

A myth: a euphemism for a lie.

Historical Reports:   In January 2004, Director Mark Pfister released the Countys 2003 Report of Wooster.  In March 2004, Mike Adam (working under Pfister) attended his first meeting to the Wooster Lake club and highlighted a list of the 5 threats to Wooster, including the significant threat of nutrients/inputs, #2 below.  This is an excerpt of the Wooster Lake clubs March 2004 Minutes:

Since Michael Adam of the Lake County Health Department came to present the 2003 Summary Report of Wooster Lake, we postponed the normal agenda and began with his talk In summary, five lake quality problems were noted:

1.       Lack of a bathymetric map

2.       Poor lake quality in the Fish Lake drain.  Inputs from Fish Lake and Fischer Lake and stormwater runoff from Wooster Lakes immediate watershed are the greatest threats to future water quality of the lake.

3.       Need for an aquatic vegetation management plan

4.       Invasive shoreline plant species

5.       Waterfowl



The Health Department is working with the Jewish council to monitor the stream between Fischer and Wooster Lake.  They are installing a flow meter to monitor the water.

#2 was such a significant threat that tax payers were to be paying for continued, county-facilitated measurements of the inputs into Wooster throughout 2004, measured on a monthly basis.

Following the further measurements, in February 2005 Mike Adam made his 2nd visit to the Wooster Lake club, this time armed with a full presentation of monthly recordings of phosphorus and suspended solids dumping into Wooster Lake from upstream.  This is an excerpt of the Wooster Lake clubs February 2005 Meeting Minutes:

Mike Adam presented an update on the issues effecting Wooster Lake and the Health Departments Lake Management Units recommendations for us.  Mike had good news and bad news for us.  The good news is the water quality is good in Wooster Lake (with Woosters deep middle masking much of the problem.)  The bad news is the amount of sediment dumped into our lake from the Fish Lake Drain. 

In June 2004 1300 lbs. of sediment per day was flowing into our lake.  Mike strongly suggested we become more aware of and involved in the Fish Lake Drain Watershed Plan (SMC).  We need to work with Fish and Fischer Lakes to reduce phosphorous & sediment coming into Wooster.  Fish Lake Nursery & Wilson Nursery are the root cause of the phosphorous

Mike Adams presentation went on to highlight that in that same month of June 2004, 20.5 lbs. of phosphorus per day was recorded dumping into Wooster at that same location!  Other months also recorded off-the-chart measurements of phosphorus.

So in the 2004 and 2005 visits to the Wooster Lake club, Lakes Management of Lake County repeatedly emphasized the phosphorus and other inputs from upstream as the greatest threat to Wooster Lake.  NEVER DID LAKES MANAGEMENT HIGHLIGHT FAST-BOATING AS ANY THREAT TO THE ECOSYSTEM.

Instead of addressing the inputs problem as documented by the County and paid for by the tax payers, in Sep 2005 Bonnie Thomson Carter was more interested in her phony political career, choosing to reinforce the real estate fraud and cover up the pollution problem when she bullied her way to getting the illegal extraterritorial ordinance against fast-boating, falsely labeling fast-boating as a threat to Wooster Lakes ecosystem.

If that isnt enough bad leadership, Bonnie Thomson Carter was reported by the Illinois Board of Elections as accepting a whopping $5,000 campaign contribution from Wilson Nurseries on Sep 1, 2004, just months after the 2003 Wooster Lake Report was released by the county.

Many bought into Bonnies lies, both the real estate fraud and that fast-boating harms Wooster Lake.  As buyers of lake-access properties are cheated, Wooster Lake continues to be polluted by the inputs.....and Bonnie makes off with her shady deals.

6th Threat to Wooster:  I agree Lakes Management should have listed in its reports and presentations a 6th threat to Wooster Lake, a threat to its rightful owners, its surrounding residents, and its ecosystem.  That threat being a lying, bullying, phony sellout: Bonnie Thomson Carter.