The Tucker City Council at its Nov. 25 meeting approved several contracts to rehabilitate two public dams within the city.
The Lake Erin Dam, located at Henderson Park, classified as a Category 1 dam, has been cited for numerous deficiencies “including seepage through the dam, vegetation along the dam, an inadequate outlet control structure, and an improperly designed emergency spillway,” according to a staff memo.
The city had recently taken over ownership of the dam from DeKalb County, and immediately began to plan for rehabilitation.
When the project is complete, two-thirds of the dam will be essentially rebuilt, according to Tucker City Engineer Ken Hildebrandt. The $2.5 million price tag for the repairs will be funded from $1.4 million in pandemic American Rescue Plan Act money received from DeKalb County, with $1.1 million coming from the city’s FY 2025 capital account.
The project will begin around March 1 and is expected to take six to eight months. Portions of the park will be off limits to visitors as work progresses. Council members expressed concerns about the amount of time that the project would take but said they were pleased that the long-needed repairs are beginning.
“It’s going to be a big mess for a while – I’m not going to lie to you,” Hildebrandt said.
In other action, the council voted 6-1 to engage Root Design Studio for construction administration at John Homestead Park, which had been purchased by the city in 2018. Alexis Weaver, without comment, was the dissenting vote.
Upon acquisition, there were several issues identified in the park, “including the dams and erosion issues on the east side of the lower lake,” according to documents submitted with the proposed improvements.
“There was flooding and erosion that caused several houses to be purchased and demolished and included in the park property,” the memo said. “DeKalb County commissioned AECOM to complete a comprehensive study to determine courses of action to solve these problems.”
The city was awarded a $2.5 million grant for park improvements that requires a 25% match by the city, about $875,000. The contact administration price tag is $119,000.
A public information meeting about the Lake Erin Dam renovation and the John Homestead Park project will be held in the near future, Hildebrandt said.
In other action, the Tucker City Council:
- Proclaimed Nov. 30 as small business day in Tucker and encouraged residents to shop local not only on that day, but whenever possible. Books and Brew owners Nathan Monga, Quinelle and Irene Bethelmie, and Daren and Karen Gayle of Georgia Gifts and More joined the meeting to celebrate the proclamation;
- Heard from Tucker Finance Director Beverly Hilton that revenues and expenditures were in line with projections;
- Approved $76,000 for 14 new pedestrian lights to be installed, owned and maintained by Georgia Power Company at the Tucker Town Green.