Lake Santee, IN

Lake Santee is an unincorporated CDP and private lake development spread across Decatur and Franklin counties, northeast of Greensburg and northwest of Batesville. The project took shape in 1964 and 1965 around a reservoir, with roads, access areas, water lines, and recreation spaces built as part of the same plan. The Lake Santee Property Owners Association, formed in 1965, owns and manages the lake, roads, access areas, and common recreational grounds. That arrangement gives the place a different feel from a traditional town: the water and the association are the civic center, while school districts divide the community between Decatur County Community Schools and Batesville Community School Corporation. Lake Santee is less a main street than a mapped network of homes, lake access, and shared rules.