Beaver Lake Spillway Elevation project funding approved

The Jasper Common Council cleared up the confusion surrounding the funding of the Beaver Lake Spillway Elevation Project.

Last week, the council approved $180,000 be appropriated from the Riverboat Gambling Fund to the project. The council took this action over the former route of loaning The Friends of Beaver Lake $180,000 from the water utility.

To pay for the Krempp Construction project, the council decided to use the $148,597 that The Friends of Beaver Lake had raised combined with the $50,000 from the Utility Service Board, plus the $15,000 from the Beaver Lake Dam Fund created through timber sales.According to Clerk/Treasure Juanita Boehm, allocating the donations to the project rather than into the proposed lake management fund would likely allow those donations to remain tax-deductible for the donors.

The remaining balance — estimated to be about $161,123 — will come from the Riverboat Gambling Fund not to exceed $180,000.

“If it [the project] goes over, that gives us a little wiggle room,” Councilman Randy Buchta said about the potential for construction contingency costs.

The fees from the increased dock and boat fees approved by the Jasper Park Board last Friday will go to a lake management fund that has yet to be created.

Additionally, Mayor Terry Seitz indicated the park board would likely begin to raise the rental rates for the 42 lots the city owns at the lake. Currently, the rent on these lots is $250 annually.

Krempp Construction bid $334,000 to complete the project raising the lake 11 inches by creating a weir barrier in the spillway. The increased water level will also require the dam to be raised 6 inches as per Department of Natural Resource requirements. Included in the overall projected cost of the construction is a 5 percent contingency of $16,500 and an engineering oversight cost not to exceed $37,000. Christopher Burke Engineering will oversee the project.