The signs of spring are all around us – the robins are chirping, the flowers are blooming, and Cascade Water Alliance has started diverting water into Lake Tapps.

The company stopped releasing water from the lake in the beginning of February. Filling the lake from White River was set to begin March 1.

As of Wednesday, March 2, the lake had an elevation of 540.7 feet.

Communications Director Elaine Kraft said the lake should reach minimum recreation levels, 541.5 feet, by mid-March and summer recreation levels, 542.5 feet, before April 1.

At the end of 2014, the lake was drawn down to 505 feet – the lowest it has been since 2003 – in order to make repairs to the lake’s dykes and flumes that feed water in and out of the lake.

“All the improvements we made make this lake incredibly stable,” Kraft said in a phone interview. “This system is the best it has ever been.”

Residents can expect Cascade to keep winter levels around 395 feet for the next few winters and to check on lake equipment every three to five years, Kraft said. This may require some drawdown, but not as dramatic as the one in 2014.

“And we will announce well in advance when we are going to pull it down,” Kraft continued.

These drawdowns also give residents around Lake Tapps the opportunity to do their own work on their docks, given they have the appropriate permits.