City of Springfield Project and Impact on Lake Massasoit
The City of Springfield is embarking on a much-needed repair of the floodgates at the dam located at 1 Allen Street, which are over 100 years old.
The City of Springfield is embarking on a much-needed repair of the floodgates at the dam located at 1 Allen Street, which are over 100 years old. The city received a grant from the federal government that will expire in 2022, and have begun the work to complete these repairs effective October 26, 2020.
The lake is currently in the process of being drawn down, with the full draw down expected to be complete on or about November 6th. The full project is scheduled for completion in April 2022, and therefore, the lake will remain drawn down for approximately 18 months.
The City, in addition to repairing the floodgates, will be completing an extensive cleanup of the lake bed and surrounding shoreline, including removing much of the debris that was deposited as a result of the tornado in June, 2011.
This project, when completed, will ultimately result in a positive outcome for Lake Massasoit, Springfield College and our students, faculty and staff.
Mayor Domenic J. Sarno, U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal and state Rep. Bud L. Williams joined with other officials on Thursday, Oct. 29 for an update on the temporary drawdown.
“This drawdown is necessary to complete the much needed resiliency improvement work for the Watershops Dam," Sarno said. “Since enduring two federally declared disasters in 2011, the city has initiated several programs related to community resiliency and disaster preparedness. This project meets two goals set by my administration: Removing the Watershops Dam from the state’s High Hazard category, and implementing green energy-efficient measures by installing solar panels at the Brookings School.”
He added, "In the future, this school can be used as an emergency shelter due to electricity produced by the solar panels... I want to thank Congressman Neal for identifying and securing federal funding for the city for this vital and lifesaving project.”
“The improvements to the Watershops Pond Dam will mean increased safety for residents living near this watersource,” Neal said. “The project will address the dam’s ‘high risk’ designation and minimize the risk of flooding in the future. The South End neighborhood will benefit greatly from this project and I am happy we were able to secure federal dollars to ensure it gets done.”
Williams added, “The drawdown of the pond will allow workers to not just clean the waterway from debris, including materials from the tornado, but will also allow workers to continue with their infrastructure improvement work on the Watershops Dam, which is needed to provide a safe infrastructure system to protect our residents and businesses."
