Posted on October 5, 2026
The Rochester City Council is set to take the final step before work begins on a massive project regarding the Silver Lake Dam.
Work on the dam modification project was originally set to begin last year but was postponed due to state and federal permitting delays.
The city had to cancel its effort to obtain bids last year as part of the holdup.
Last month, city leaders received an updated list of bids for the project. All of the bids were millions of dollars over a $15.1 million presented to the city council last year.
Rochester City Council Set to Vote Monday Night on $18.9 Million Bid for Silver Lake Dam Project
Rochester Public Works Department staff is recommending the city council approve the bid provided by St. Michael, MN-based Rachel Contracting, LLC. Their bid came in at $18,937,132.74, which was lowest of the four bids the city received last month, according to the agenda item.
The elected leaders will have the option of approving dredging in additional areas of the lake at the cost of $729,269.10. The bid provided by Rachel Contracting includes the alternative dredging.
The agenda item for Monday night’s vote includes a new estimate from the city engineer that puts the price of the project at $20,988,366.05. The city is estimating a more than $21 million budget to account for contingencies.
Silver Lake Dam Project Funding Sources
A presentation set to be shown to the council includes funding sources for the project.
The funding is made up of $2.68 million in state funding, $3,009,727 in funds from Rochester Public Utilities, $11,092,877.57 from the 1982 and 1989 Flood Control Funds and $4,327,828.98 from the Stormwater Utility.
Along with dredging, the plans call for replacing the Silver Lake Dam with a series of cascading pools, modifying the shoreline along part of West Silver Lake Dr., installing a pedestrian/biking bridge east of North Broadway and adding a biking/walking path on the north shore of the lake.
Work is set to begin on October 12 upon approval of the bid, according to the agenda item.
