COLUMBUS, Ohio – Residents of Buckeye Lake were ready for some good news, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources had a bit to deliver yesterday.
READ MORE: In the Columbus Dispatch
Department Director Jim Zehringer told members of the Ohio House Buckeye Lake Caucus that he expects construction of a new Buckeye Lake dam to begin next summer, about a year ahead of previous estimates.
But that didn’t mean everyone left the meeting happy.
Zehringer said that the contract for dam engineering and design should be awarded this summer, with that design work to be completed by next spring.
“It’s quite aggressive,” said Zehringer, who added that the state is “still exploring multiple construction delivery methods,” and that public input on the new dam’s engineering was welcomed.
Zehringer didn’t commit to an estimated completion date or revised cost, saying that those details would come into clearer focus once the engineering and design contract was awarded.
While the new construction deadlines provided some good news, Sen. Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster) made it clear that he still had concerns: namely, the ability of address emergency situations on the lake and the number of residents whose boats are stranded, on lifts, on docks or in the mud with the water level reduced to a point not seen in more than two decades.