First Posted: 3/18/2015
LANCASTER (AP) — Residents and business owners near central Ohio’s Buckeye Lake are pleading for officials not to keep the water level unseasonably low, saying the move intended to reduce the risk of a catastrophic failure of a dam will seriously hurt tourism and property values there.
More than 470 people packed into a public meeting Tuesday night in the wake of a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers report about problems with the nearly 180-year-old earthen dam.
It has been weakened by several hundred homes built into it over time, along with accompanying docks, trees, utility lines and other structures. The recent report said a dam failure could endanger the lives of 3,000 people, and it recommended immediately replacing the dam or draining the recreational reservoir about 30 miles east of Columbus.
Officials have allowed water to flow out of the lake to keep it at about half of the usual 6-foot summer depth, and commenters at the meeting said not filling it more could have dire consequences for an area that attracts boaters and tourists during warmer weather.
Steve DeBruin, who owns Feeder Creek Veterinary Services in Millersport, told officials that lowering the lake for the summer would threaten the survival of many small businesses, The Columbus Dispatch reported.
Others raised the issue of property values. Among them was John Johanssen, who told officials that owners would benefit from clearer documentation of the situation — something to show banks if they seek refinancing, the Lancaster Eagle-Gazette reported.
“Some declarative, affirmative statement that that dam is going to be fixed would go a long way in restoring the faith of the community and help us as we go forward with our property values,” Johanssen said.
Some at the meeting said they want the state to act immediately to address the problem. While the state evaluates the report and what to do next, emergency management officials are planning exercises about how they’d respond to a dam failure.
A transcript of the meeting will be provided to the governor’s office and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the Dispatch said.
