Cutler Lake Dam Spillway Project Dedication

BLUE ROCK, Ohio – State and local officials gathered for a special dedication at Blue Rock State Park Monday afternoon.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources along with other dignitaries were on hand to celebrate the completion of the Cutler Lake Dam spillway project. It was a $4.7 million project and was funded through the state’s last capital bill. The project is a replacement of an 80 year old dam, and now provides safety for people and creates a better recreation area.

“The public safety was paramount but the added benefit was it’s beautiful, it preserved the swimming area, new picnic shelter, picnic tables, all sorts of new amenities for people to enjoy that came along with the public safety,” said Director of Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Mary Mertz.

The design for the project started back in 2015 and was completed in the Fall. Renovations included a new spillway that was built adjacent to the old spillway while the lake was temporarily drained. The new spillway holds a higher capacity and allows for more water to pass over making it a safer dam system.

“It’s a new design. It has higher capacity. This allows to pass more water over the spillway at a given time and it makes it significantly safer down the stream. We no longer have an overtopping risk is what puts us at danger for a dam failure,” said Project Manager for Division of Engineering, Jacob Bench.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources is getting ready for the next capital bill and they have many plans for the new Hocking Hills Lodge underway. They also have a number of dam projects in the works with a goal of bringing Ohio up to code and keeping it safe.