Lake Laverne Project Expanded At its June meeting, the Iowa Board of Regents approved a revised budget for the restoration of Lake LaVerne. With an additional $90,000 in general university funds, the project budget has increased to $476,500. The new funds will pay for additional design work, new plantings around the lake and improvements to two pedestrian paths between the south shore of the lake and Lincoln Way. According to Cathy Brown, a campus planner in facilities planning and management, additional plantings will go along the north shore, the southeast corner of the lake and the western shoreline, where much of the current vegetation will be removed when a storm sewer is rerouted during restoration this summer. The restoration project also includes removing lake bottom sediments with a floating dredge, installing a well and constructing an island for swan nesting. Additionally, the Class of 1995's gift to the university is a $50,000-plus mechanical aeration system for the lake, which will reduce odor and algae growth. The aeration system will be installed within two years. With the revised budget, Brown said university planners also are considering options, such as seating, for recognizing the class of 1995; the classes of 1980 and 1988, which contributed $100,000 to the restoration project; and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Council, a student group that for nearly 20 years has coordinated the care of swans Lancelot and Elaine. Brown said the additional landscaping work will be completed within a year. Preliminary work on the restoration project has begun, with completion targeted for August. _____ contact: Internal Communications, (515) 294-7065 updated: 7-7-95