Close the Dam Gates! Repairs Planned for Lepper Dam

There's a dam problem in Menomonee Falls, and fortunately village leaders are working on a dam solution. 

As you know, Mill Pond will be drained and dredged as the summer shifts into fall. The pond will be drawn down after Labor Day, and years of sediment will be hauled out to the dump - about four feet in all. For perspective, Mill Pond is actually just a few feet deep. 

However, the first phase of the project is to make necessary repairs to Lepper Dam. The village approved $192,195 to replace the gates, fill in cracks, pressure wash, chemically grout, and cement the dam. This portion of project was budgeted for $211,000, so the final bid came in just below. 

The new dam gates will be stainless steel rather than steel. They will be lighter and easier to handle, and will address the leaks that have been occurring there. The village paid to repair the 40-year-old gates just two years ago, but the new seals failed. The repairs at the time were required by the Department of Natural Resources, but gate replacement was always on the radar for village leaders. 

"There was an attempt made earlier in response to an inspection and it required repairs at the time," Village Manager Mark Fitzgerald said. 

Dreding Mill Pond is the next phase of the project. The silt that has built up behind the dam puts added stress on the structure. The dredging operation was a maintenance recommendation from the DNR. In all, the entire project is budgeted to cost $400,000. 

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