PETERS SPILLWAY UPGRADE IN WORKS
Upgrades in works for Lake Park dam
The nearly 90-year-old Peters Lake Park dam spillway could be in line for some upgrades.
The Peters council commissioners, at their April 26 meeting, awarded a $61,645 contract to Rizzo International of Pittsburgh, which will work with the Department of Environmental protection to determine what needs to be done, said Mark Zemaitis, director of engineering for the township.
Mr. Zemaitis said the township was approached by the DEP about eight or nine years ago about augmenting the spillway at Peters Lake dam in some capacity to handle large flooding events.
“The reason is the modern spillway design criteria was not met when this dam was built,” Mr. Zemaitis said.
Last year, the township received a letter from the DEP stating it completed a study on probably maximum precipitation and that the township “needs to focus on the seriously inadequate spillway which led to the dam’s unsafe designation back in 2012.”
Mr. Zemaitis said the dam is likely adequate to handle 98% of the water from significant rain events.
“The reality is we may build something that never activates in our lifetimes,” he said.
According to council documents, the dam, known as Canonsburg No. 2 Dam, was constructed in 1932 by the Citizens Water Company of Washington. In the early 1990s, Peters Township purchased the lake/dam and surrounding property from Pennsylvania American Water and it is now used for recreation purposes. The dam forms Peters Lake, located in Peters Lake Park off Center Church Road.
Council also passed a resolution renaming a 725-foot portion of East McMurray Road to East McMurray Court.
Nine homes will be impacted by the road name change — houses No. 446 to No. 464.
The name change comes after a portion of East McMurray Road near the intersection of Rolling Hills Drive was physically relocated as part of a road realignment and does not connect with the remaining portion of East McMurray Road. The new Rolling Hills Drive leads to Peters Township High School and Rolling Hills Park.
According to a letter sent to the impacted residents and included in council’s docket, the township has contacted the U.S. Postal Service and local emergency services including Washington County 911 regarding the name change. No mail disruption is expected and residents do not have to file an address change with the post office.
However, residents will have to update their personal accounts such as insurance, mortgage and utilities to reflect the new street name. Residents affected will also have to update their official documents, such as driver’s licenses, but not until they are set for renewal.