COLUMBUS, OH -- A project to improve navigation through the "Iron Channel" connecting the East and West Reservoirs of Portage Lakes State Park in Summit County will continue into 2003. However, the 720-foot channel will reopen to recreational boat traffic during the upcoming spring and summer, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
The original project to straighten the waterway and replace the channel's deteriorated sheet pile walls was slated for completion in May. However, unexpected construction problems forced ODNR to redesign some sections. About 60 percent of the upgrade is now finished. ODNR engineers are currently devising a new method of constructing the remaining 40 percent of sheet pile wall, most of which is located at the channel's western end.
We remain confident that the long-term benefits of this improvement project will outweigh its short-term setbacks, said Dan West, Ohio State Parks chief. In the meantime, we urge boaters to use extra caution when navigating the narrow points of the channel this summer.
ODNR plans to reopen the channel in the spring for an extended recreation season, then close it again in mid-autumn in order to finish the upgrade. The work does not otherwise affect boating on either reservoir or any other lake at the park. The agency began notifying business owners and residents in the area this week of its plans.
Current construction delays and the redesigned wall sections are expected to add about $600,000 to the original $1.3 million price of the upgrade. Funding to complete the project exists within current capital appropriations. ODNR assures area residents that aesthetic standards for the project remain high and any new design will complement the 60 percent already finished.
We are committed to completing the work as quickly as possible and in a way that is cost effective and acceptable to recreational boaters, as well as homeowners and businesses in the area, West concluded.
For Further Information Contact:
Brian Andrews, Portage Lakes State Park
(330) 644-2220
-or-
Andy Ware, ODNR Media Relations
(614) 265-6882