Price Dam gate still inoperable; county monitors risk and DNR schedules informational meeting on Lac Courte Oreilles water-level petition

Conservation staff informed the committee that the second lift gate at Price Dam remains unresponsive. An engineer recommended testing a manual lift with excavation equipment in spring to determine whether a wing wall is pinching the gate or whether a clutch mechanism has failed. Staff cautioned that if the wing wall requires repair, costs could run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars and that the county is monitoring the structure closely to avoid downstream flooding in large rain events.

Staff said they prefer waiting until spring to attempt manual lifting and will seek municipal-dam grant funding if needed, but noted the application cycle and timing may make immediate grant submission difficult. The presentation included a worst-case scenario assessment: staff said one functioning gate could likely handle several inches of rain but that an extreme storm could overwhelm a compromised dam.

Separately, staff announced a Wisconsin DNR public informational meeting on Dec. 15 (11 a.m.–1 p.m., 7 Winds Conference Center) to consider a petition to increase the ordered water level on Lac Courte Oreilles by 6 inches to restore historic levels and support wild-rice production in associated flowage areas. Staff said the comment period closes Dec. 25 and that the LCO Conservation Department supports the increase. Committee members expressed interest in monitoring the outcome and in continuing dam maintenance discussion at the committee level.