By David Fleet
Editor
Goodrich — By a 4-0 vote on Jan. 12 night the Village Council approved two proposals for the Goodrich Dam and the park below the spillway.
The council approved $2,200 for Atlas Township based Johnson & Sons to provide one-to-three inch limestone along the Kearsley Creek below the dam to reduce ongoing erosion in the park area.
The council also authorized the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy to perform a required inspection of the village dam and report at no charge to the village.
An inspection of the Goodrich Dam is required every four years. Inspection reports must be prepared, signed and sealed by a professional engineer licensed in Michigan.
Since the Goodrich Dam has a “Significant” hazard potential rating, the owner is also required by Part 315 to review the emergency action plan for the dam and determine if it is up to date.
In December 2016 Lucas Trumble, dam safety engineer of the MDEQ dam safety unit, completed the inspection. The dam was then inspected and passed in May 2020. It was reported the Goodrich dam’s significant hazard rating has nothing to do with condition, rather based on the downstream impact if the dam were to fail. The rating is not based on the likelihood of failure. The bus garage and a few homes downstream on the Kearsley Creek could be impacted.
Earlier this month the Goodrich Village Council along with consulting engineers from Wade Trim applied for a Dam Risk Reduction Grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy. If approved, the $200,000 grant which requires a $20,000/ 10% match from the village, will provide information needed to make an informed decision on the future repair, alteration or removal alternatives. In addition, the information obtained will measure the short-term and long-term reduction measures.