The dam we know today is a culmination of many peoples hard work and dedication. It was transformed via a 3 stage process over the years. The dam is a critical piece of infrastructure that allows our community to keep a stable level of water in the lake, prevent flooding, and give people a chance to repair their docks during the colder months.
Phase 1:
For those of us who have been around in the 50’s and 60’s the dam looked a lot different in those days. The spillway used to have a bridge across it so that people could get to the Lakeshore Inn. At the opposite end of the dam there used to be a building which was a store call the 3 Sisters. When the building was removed a lot of the foundation was left behind. Phase one included the removal of the foundation and the wood that was buried in it. Additionally the remains of the bridge were removed across the spillway. The trees, saw grass and weeds were removed from the upstream and downstream face.
Phase 2:
The second phase of construction was to stabilize the upstream and downstream face of the dam. Dozens of loads of Rip-rap (4-6 inch rocks) were trucked in by the contractor, and placed on the upstream and downstream side of the dam. During this phase the core wall of the dam was exposed in various locations for inspection purposes and to verify the as built condition since a lot of the original drawings held by the UGLPOA were not available. After the rip-rap was placed, the top of the dam was paved to create a road to the spillway and to add protection to the top of the dam.
Phase 3:
The upstream side of the spillway needed to have a new apron constructed to protect the spillway and add additional support to the wing walls. Dave and Joe along with a few local laborers formed out the new apron and installed miles of rebar and about 45 yards of concrete to fix the spillway. The downstream side of the spillway then got the large concrete blocks put in place to prevent shore line erosion and the stream got large rocks to slow down the water when it comes off the dam. The purpose of the large concrete blocks at the base of the valve outlet were installed to keep the swirling water coming from the stream from causing erosion to the downstream face of the dam.