Dam Bonding Proposal Goes Beyond Flood Control

(THIRD OF A SERIES) As listed on the ballot, the $3 million bond issue for repair of dams and construction of storm sewers is identified as "flood control", and while this is in part true, that identification is primarily to satisfy the technicialities of law, and to conform to advice of bonding attorneys. As was noted in the previous article, one of the most pressing reasons for the bonding is public safety - to make repair of structures which are in danger of collapse, to remove some of the old dam buildings which present a hazard and liability to the city, and to upgrade storm sewer systems needed to prevent re-occurrence of flooded basements, property damage and washed - out streets at peak run-off times. Some of this - notably the storm sewer relief - can properly be called flood control. Even the proper reconstruction of the dams themselves will provide some flood control beneñts, especially if and when the Huron River Watershed Council can initiate the early flood warning system which they are working toward. Proper floodgates and controls will allow for the provisions of storage capacity in times of high water, and to regúlate the flow of the river. Rebuilding of Geddes will also be valuable in times of another extreme weather condition - drought. Ann Arbor has a contract with the state of Michigan to assure passage of a certain flow of water past the Waste Treatment Plant downstream from Geddes, and this is most easily assured by the Geddes Pond, which can be tapped in times of extremely low flow to provide the water necessary for proper operation of the treatment plant. But a definite plus benefit of the bond issue will be for recreation and major I park development along the Huron River. And while there should be no implicatión that recreational development will not occur if the bond should fail, it should also be emphasized that proper coordination of repair and rehabilitation on and around the dams will facilítate park development and save a considerable amount of money in the long run. If the city is forced to make piecemeal solutions to the dam problems over a period of time, instead of tackling the question all at once, and with imput from other departments (such as Parks and Recreation) which also have plans for the area, duplication of effort - and expenditure of money - would undoubtedly result. Then there is the question of the recreation development planned for the Geddes Pond area, which is completely dependent upon a working dam and a full pond. A plan for the first phase of this development, made by landscape architect Kenneth Polakowski, has been submitted to the state of Michigan in application for funds from the state recreational bond monies. The city proposes, under this application, to spend $64,500 of Ann Arbor money, and to receive from the state $258,000 for the development. ■ This application was formally submitted to the state in April of this year and has an excellent chance for approval. A field inspection of the site is planned by Department of Natural Resources personnel later this week, and this is one of the final steps of procedure toward approval by that agency, prior to submission of recommendation to the legislature. As stated, the works on the other dams will have to proceed one way or another, as will the storm sewer construction, but approval of the voters is necessary for reconstruction of the Geddes Dam, and the plan for development is dependent upon that construction.
If the bonding fails, then the application for state recreation bond monies will have to be withdrawn, and a new one submitted. But the time necessary to make new plans, and to get them in for approval, would make it extremely unlikely that Ann Arbor could get in on any distribution of recreation bond money. The Department of Natural Resources has been swamped with applications for funding under this program, and it seems unlikely that they would wait long merely to accommodata But Geddes Pond is which could be helpel planning by coordinatj to park plans. J With the purchase this summer of the Wirth Canoe Livery, and the recent proposals of the Modal Cities area for planning and developj Summit playground, ;j possibility of obtain property, Argo Pond d a major parkland devel The city already owns the old Municipal Bathing Beach lq Longshore, most of tl between Longshore ar 1 has been negotiating acquire the Johnson-Gi the western side of the river.
Abandonment of the old raceway and the power house on Broadway also gives possibility to tying this parcel in to Riverside Park, which, of course, presently ties into Island Park. If the work on the dam could proceed in coordination with the desires for parkland development (and Argo Dam is the key to the connecting all of these pareéis), a major parkland parcel might become more easily developed. Barton, too, is at a most critical stage of development. Last year Council hired R. W. Bills, former landscape architect for the Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority, to develop a site plan for the Barton Pond property, the 50-acre "island" in the bend of the river just below the dam, and the newly-purchased Bird Hills Park of 117 acres between Huron River Drive and Newport. This major parkland parcel is destined to become one of the gems of Ann Arbor's park system, but it pressnts some problems in design because of lack of access. Bills has completed the first phase of the design, has had it reviewed by Council and the Park Department and is about to submit a second plan. It would be undoubtedly result in considerable savings of city funds if the work on the dam could proceed all at once and be coordinated with the parks plan being developed for that area. The key words in all these situations are "planning", "coordination" and "cooperation." It makes more sense, from a total planning standpoint, to consider all the development needed on and around the dams with a total bond issue, rather than attempt solutions piecemeal. It is perhaps unfortunate that the proposal on the ballot only mentions flood control as the benefit to be derived from the $3 million issue. There is certainly much more than that.