Welcome To Lac La Belle

The Lac La Belle Management District was created in 1982. Guided by a seven-member Board of Commissioners, with one appointed representative of Waukesha County and another a representative from the Town of Oconomowoc, continuous efforts have been made throughout history to protect and improve the water quality of the lake. The mission of the LLBMD explains “The LLBMD seeks to promote environmentally conscious and fiscally responsible decisions by providing education, enhancing a healthy lake ecosystem and ensuring safe use of Lac La Belle for today and tomorrow.”

The name Lac La Belle in French means “Lake The Beautiful” and we believe this to be true! According to the Wisconsin Historical Society, Lac La Belle was first home to Potowatomi inhabitants along with the first settler, Aumable Vicau, who established the first trading post in the area in 1827. By the 1870’s the area was known as a vacation area for wealthy landowners throughout the country with many large homes being built on the shores of Lac La Belle and adjacent Fowler Lake. The two lakes are connected by the Peacock Dam on North Main Street.

Lac La Belle is the final lake in a chain of six lakes along the Oconomowoc River watershed system. Lac La Belle is 2.6 miles long and 1.2 miles wide at the widest point with a shore length of 11.2 miles and a maximum depth is 45 feet. Residents of three municipalities, the City of Oconomowoc, the Town of Oconomowoc and the Village of Lac La Belle, own the largely residential shoreline. Three significant wetland areas and two islands are home to several native animals. Lac La Belle is a drainage lake meaning that the water in it flows in and out over several years from the various streams, river and natural and manmade runoff from its shoreline. This makes the mission of the LLBMD so important to Lac La Belle!

Whether you live along the shoreline, use the lake for recreational activities, or simply want to take in the nature that exists in and around Lac La Belle, we hope you like it here as much as we do and take good care of it while you are here!