Loon Lake Dam project completion pending

CHESTERTOWN | The Loon Lake Dam renovation has taken years of planning, engineering, applying for funding, followed by a year of construction; however, it will be finished within several weeks, Town of Chester Supervisor John Maday said in a May 2 interview with The Sun. All that remains in the project is for the state Department of Environmental Conservation to make their final inspection and approve the construction work, then the waters of Loon Lake will be raised from its wintertime level to its temperate-months depth, and lakewater will again be rushing over the dam's spillway, Maday said. "At this point, we're just waiting for DEC to inspect it and grant approval," Mayday said. "The lagoon will be filled — it takes about three days — then the sandbags will be taken out where the coffer dam was," he said. The timeline for the dam's reconstruction called for the project to be complete by Mother's Day weekend, but that completion date has been extended for a week or two, Mayday said. The cost of the reconstruction ended up being approximately $1.5 million, not much more than the quote from D. A. Collins Companies, the successful bidder on the project. The project included reinforcing the dam's spillway as well as reconstructing its wing walls. In 2019, the dam was classified as "high hazard" by state officials due to its deteriorating condition. DEC officials warned that if the dam breached, it would flood a substantial area of Chestertown as well as state Route 8. At the April Chester Town Board meeting, town officials heard that the construction project would soon be complete, and the news was well-received. In other business conducted at the board meeting, the town board accepted the resignation of James Monaco and Arnold Jensen from the town's Board of Assessment Review and appointed John Nick to fill Monaco's term and appointed Susan Lintner to fill Jensen's term — both terms end Sept. 30, 2026. Also, North Warren Chamber of Commerce president Craig Leggett reported that the effort to "brand" the northern Warren County towns of Chester, Horicon and Johnsburg was moving forward, as a committee of residents of the three towns, three from each town, was forming and Trampoline Design marketing agency of Glens Falls had been chosen to develop tourism promotion strategies and materials. Leggett told the town board that the committee will be holding five community meetings to hear suggestions from the public on the effort to build tourism and to keep local residents informed on the project's progress. In another matter, the town board approved a surcharge of $100 for town short-term rental applications that are not submitted within 60 days of the property owner receiving a permit from the Warren County Treasurer's Office. Also, the board authorized the Warren County Planning Department to apply for a state grant to develop a town playground and pickleball courts on the grounds of the Chester Municipal Center. The board also approved a request for a town Occupancy Tax grant of $500 submitted by the Chestertown Conservation Club to help offset expenses of holding the organization's Fishing Derby, scheduled for Saturday, May 17.

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Loon Lake Dam project completion pending

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