Three local dams critical to Southwest Ohio's extensive flood prevention system will see $15 million in repairs, with a big part of the cost covered by federal money.
On Tuesday, Miami Conservancy District leaders and U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Dayton, came together at the Taylorsville Dam to announce $8.6 million from the Homeland Security Appropriations Bill will go to the project. It’s one of the largest dollar amounts awarded to a single project under this bill.
The conservancy district will repair the Taylorsville, Germantown and Englewood dams. They're part of the more than 100-year-old flood protection system the district maintains.
Turner said the system needs — and deserves — this maintenance.
“The floods that occurred in 1913 were devastating to our community, and our community made a commitment then that they were going to design a system that would be unprecedented in our country to create a dam system that will work — and has — for over 100 years to protect our community," he said.
The money was awarded through the FEMA Pre-Disaster Mitigation grant program.
A Miami Conservancy District engineering analysis found the whole system needs about $140 million in repairs made.
The money came at the right time for the organization, Conservancy District General Manager MaryLynn Lodor said, especially as the system has had to hold back flood water more often in recent years.
“Over these last 100 years we've seen a lot of storage events. Our dams have stored floodwaters over 2,100 times since they were constructed, and every year they get more water, they get more damage because of all of the freezing and the thawing that happens, and it's not going to get better on its own,” Lodor said.
The plan is to replace old concrete, add steel rod anchors and install drainage pipes behind the dam walls.
The repairs will extend the life of the dams by 75 years. The projects will break ground next spring, and should be completed by the end of 2028.
In total, the project will cost around $15 million to complete. The remaining money will come from capital funding and bonds.
“We recognize the value and the devastation that water can do," Lodor said. "And we've seen it here in the Miami Valley, and we are committed to making sure that never happens again.”
