Corps rejects proposal
By Daniel Arens
In the latest of a never-ending series of blows which the Mercer County Water Resource Board has faced concerning flooding issues at Lake Shore Estates, the United States Army Corps of Engineers firmly rejected the board’s diversion proposal.
This proposal, which brought water south along the east end of the road which runs north-south TO THE east of the development, would have to cross through Corps recreation area. The Corps had previously expressed that such a plan would likely be approved, provided the water board could get detailed engineering plans for the project and obtain the approval of affected or potentially affected landowners.
The water board has worked on successfully completing both of these prerequisites, but a recent meeting at the site brought board members into contact with five Corps representatives, none of whom had been part of previous discussions. These representatives were far more critical of the plan than previous contacts had been.
The morning of Dec. 9, the date of the water resource board monthly meeting, Greg Lange, water board secretary, received an emailed letter from the Corps confirming their rejection of the engineered plan as presented.
