Where does the lake begin?

A FED up Portishead councillor is calling for urgent repairs to a town beauty spot - to stop it becoming swamped with storm water.Councillor David Pasley says immediate work needs to be carried out to the sluice at the Lake Grounds to regulate water levels at the lake.The call follows weeks of heavy rain which have seen the lake overspill onto the surrounding pathways and play areas, making the area impossible for people to use safely.Councillor Pasley said: "The Lake Grounds look a real mess."The lake is constantly overflowing because of the problems with the sluice gate which means the excess water is not flowing out into the sea."This has meant the water is in turn flooding into the children's play area and the other day the roundabout was completely surrounded by water, making it impossible to use. Where the lake is flooding over onto the paths, it is impossible to see where one begins and one ends, which is very dangerous. Leaves have also been allowed to build up on the paths which, with the wet weather, have become very slippery."The complaints come at the same time as North Somerset Council is considering spending £40,000 on upgrading the play area at the beauty spot.Cllr Pasley added: "The council needs to look at the overall maintenance of the Lake Grounds before spending thousands of pounds on the children's play area."The longer it is left looking shabby, the more money will eventually need to be spent on it." North Somerset Council spokesman Nick Yates said the area had become waterlogged due to the recent wet weather.Mr Yates said: "The sluice at the lake is manually operated and it was opened before Christmas."We have sent someone to inspect the area and the sluice gate will be opened again, depending on the tides, to get the water levels at the lake down.