Posted on March 10, 2020
HOLLIDAYSBURG — Blair County commissioners have taken steps toward a large-scale joint project that will dredge the lake at Lakemont Park and position the dam for repairs.
At the request of the Intergovernmental Stormwater Committee, which has arranged funding for the proposed project, commissioners have agreed to accept a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers with terms and conditions for the dredging.
In addition, commissioners voted Tuesday to apply for a project-related permit from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission and a highway occupancy permit from the state Department of Transportation.
The permit from the Fish and Boat Commission, according to Teddie Kreitz of Keller Engineers, will allow the lake’s water to be drawn down so that excessive sediment can be removed.
“What you have now is a large lake full of sediment,” Kreitz told commissioners. “Some areas only have 6 inches of water.”
Because of that, the lake offers little help to control Brush Run’s stormwater, and sediment that washes downstream from Lakemont Park’s lake. After dredging, the lake is expected to once again become a settling basin.
Commissioners Chairman Bruce Erb, Laura Burke and Amy Webster thanked Kreitz for her explanation of the proposed project and rendered their unanimous support for moving forward.
The Intergovernmental Stormwater Committee — made up of representatives from the county and local municipal governments — has been pursuing the the project for more than a year. According to Kreitz, it’s an effective way of removing sediment and reaching goals that have been established with the state Department of Environmental Protection.
Kreitz told commissioners that the county will not have to pay for the proposed project. The costs, expected to be covered by a National Fish & Wildlife Federation grant, will be paid by the ISC, she said.
Mirror Staff Writer Kay Stephens is at 946-7456.
Source: altoonamirror.com
