Leland Dam Authority Meeting

Commissioner Report

The Leland Dam Authority, which was meeting for the first time in three months, selected a new leader, learned that the cost to monitor and evaluate the structure won’t be as intimidating as first thought, and cleared up a longstanding question about public access to the walkway.

All in all, a productive, if not perfect, meeting, which we’ll discuss later.

First to our new chair, Dawn Lund, who is also one of our newest members. She was selected by commissioners to replace Tim O’Non, who resigned as the county drain commissioner due to family health reasons. Dawn has a long history with Leland and an ongoing love affair with Lake Leelanau and the Leland River. One of her priorities is lake level monitoring.

Also present was interim drain commissioner Chet Janik, who provided guidance in determining a path for the selection of an engineering firm to evaluate the seriousness and identify solutions for a crack in the dam and surface deterioration of the dam walls.

We have been assured that the dam infrastructure is solid, at least for now. The Leland Dam is very low on the list of dam maintenance priorities in Michigan. For that we’re thankful. In terms of age, the dam is a relatively youngster, with its last major renovation coming upon its 20th birthday.

The state ranks the dam’s “hazard potential” as high, but that grade has everything to do with the effect on upstream riparians all the way to Cedar should the structure fail. The rating has little to do with the health of the dam itself.

The meeting included a hiccup, as only one of two companies that bid on a request for proposals (RFP) to monitor the dam’s imperfections was invited to the meeting. A representative from a partner bid prepared by the Spicer Group and GEI Consultants, firms that bring different skill sets to the table, was present and ready to discuss the joint RFP.

However, Smart Structures LLC, which submitted the competing bid, was not asked to participate. The firm is out of Florida. GEI has an office in Traverse City.

Due to the unfairness created, the Dam Authority did not recommend a firm for the work. A meeting has been scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15, to recommend a contractor. The final decision is up to the County Board.

However, during conversations at the meeting, authority members did learn that our RFP request might have been aggressive compared to the results needed. Interim administrator Lauren Cypher learned enough to plug $80,000 into the 2027 budget for dam work as a reasonable placeholder for the cost of dam monitoring and evaluation during the next fiscal year.

The bids that met the requirements of the RFP came in at $412,500 and $334,500. Those were budget busters. Hopefully the extent of work sought in the RFP document may represent overkill.

In other action at the meeting, which lasted more than two hours, the authority:

• Reviewed an emergency action plan that will be put to the test later this month during a mock disaster training exercise. Dawn came to the meeting with copious notes on how a draft Emergency Action Plan could be improved and updated. A revised document should be before us on Dec. 15. An organizational flowchart of required action places county maintenance supervisor Duane Flaska, who is in charge of monitoring lake levels, at the top of the list as “primary dam operator.”

• And finally, a longstanding issue was settled over whether the gate on the bridge walk as it connects to the Falling Waters Lodge should be locked to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Dam Authority and commissioners had been told that the final decision was waiting for an opinion from the county attorney. Minutes from the authority’s March 25, 2026, meeting show the administrator stated that he was “waiting on legal counsel” for wording for a sign that would allow the gate to remain open.

When Cypher took over, she quizzed the attorney, who said he had never been contacted on the subject. She did some more digging and found a report from the county insurance carrier requesting that the gate be locked unless a ramp was provided by the lodge instead of the step now in place.

Hopefully a ramp will be built to complete access. Until then, the gate should be locked, the county insurance carrier has instructed.