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Nicholasville officials consider lowering Lake Mingo berm to reclassify it as an impoundment
Summary
Nicholasville City commissioners discussed lowering the berm at Lake Mingo by about 2 feet to allow the lake to be reclassified as an impoundment rather than a dam, which city staff say would change state regulatory requirements.
Nicholasville City commissioners discussed a plan to lower the berm at Lake Mingo by about 2 feet to change its regulatory classification from a dam to an impoundment, Mayor said Monday. The Division of Water met with city staff last week and indicated the change could move the feature out of the state’s dam regulatory classification if the top-of-berm elevation is reduced to roughly sidewalk level.
The change matters because Kentucky’s dam regulations apply additional planning standards to structures meeting either of two thresholds: at least 25 feet in height or containing 50 acre-feet of water measured from the dam’s top level, Mayor said. The mayor said Lake Mingo is currently about 17 feet tall and the lake contains roughly 70 acre-feet measured from the top-of-dam level. Lowering the top-of-dam by about 2 feet would reduce the calculated volume and could reclassify the site as an impoundment, which carries different (and in this case, less stringent) regulatory requirements.
The mayor said the Division of Water will still require engineering design, construction plans and continued maintenance controls if the feature becomes an impoundment, including vegetation control, mowing and preventing animal holes. He said the city had rejected an earlier suggestion to drain the lake and that draining had been estimated previously at roughly a half-million dollars. The mayor added that recent extreme rainfall that ranked among the highest events in state history did not overtop the structure and that the emergency spillway remains several feet below the road.
Commissioners and staff discussed practical items that an engineering plan will need to address, including debris control around the riser and options to minimize sticks and buildup at the main drain. No vote was taken; the mayor said staff will proceed with the required engineering and design work to present to the Division of Water for review.
The discussion followed a January violation the city received related to the structure; Mayor said addressing the classification was intended to resolve the regulatory issue without extensive capital upgrades.
