The Water’s Fine as 2 Lakes Debut at Hansen Dam Park : Recreation: A party opens the $15.8-million project. One area will be for fishing, while the smaller pool will be for swimming.

Glenn Bates was impressed Saturday as he strolled around--shirtless and in shorts--during the grand opening of two new lakes at the Hansen Dam Recreation Area.

As a kid in the 1970s, Bates fished and swam at the old Holiday Lake, which closed in the early 1980s because silt from the nearby Tujunga Wash filled its waters.

On Saturday he joined an estimated 3,000 people who celebrated the new lakes’ debut with a free party featuring music, food and local politicians.

Many in the crowd were armed with umbrellas and sun block to shield them from the blazing heat. Temperatures sizzled at 100 degrees, but Bates, who lives in Granada Hills, was prepared with a cold drink and dark shades.

“This looks a lot better than the old lake,” said Bates, who brought along his 3-year-old daughter, Brooklynn. “The old lake was better for fishing because there was more room, but everything else about this is nicer. The swimming lake is much better for kids.”

Alene Walker of Panorama City and her friend, Merle Williams of Sylmar, agreed. They spent many weekends swimming and water skiing with their families at Holiday Lake, and plan to frequent the park.

“There’s no comparison,” Walker said. “This is a lot nicer and much more beautiful.”

Construction of the lakes, their shorelines and a 250-car parking lot started in December 1997, but the project was in the planning stages for nearly 15 years because funding was tough to come by.

The $15.8-million project--designed and constructed by the Army Corps of Engineers--was paid for with city, county and federal money.

“A lot of planning goes into something like this. You can’t just go in and dig a hole,” said Edward Louie, project manager for the corps. “After a lengthy approval process from Congress, we started specific plans in 1993, then realized we didn’t have the funds, so we had to scale back.”

State Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sylmar), who took a dip with his 5 1/2-month-old grandson Raymond, believes the project took so long because it’s in the working-class northeast Valley.

“It’s an issue of priority,” Alarcon said. “The Valley as a whole and the northeast Valley always end up getting the short end of the stick.”

Clad in swimming trunks, Alarcon went in the lake at the conclusion of the official ceremony, which was marked by the release of red, white and blue balloons.

Onlookers, some floating in paddle boats on the fishing lake, others soaking up rays, clapped and cheered.

The oval fishing lake, which is open to paddle or rowboats, covers nine acres and has a maximum depth of 18 feet. Measuring about 600 by 550 feet, it is stocked with 300 catfish and tilapia, and will be restocked as necessary. In the winter, trout will be added.

The 1.5-acre swimming lake, which looks more like a big pool, measures 500 by 150 feet and has a maximum depth of 4 1/2 feet of filtered, chlorinated water.

Both lakes will be open from dawn to dusk daily and operated by the Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks. Fishing and swimming will be free for children, but adults will pay $1.25 to swim and must have a state license to fish.

“This is absolutely fantastic,” said Dennis O’Sullivan, a Valley native who frequented the old Holiday Lake. “I see more people swimming today than I did as a kid at the old lake. That’s probably because the water wasn’t very good for swimming. You got all itchy sometimes.”