TodayOpossum Lake project receives $1.5 million grant
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The project to preserve Opossum Lake has received a state grant. Michael Bupp/The Sentinel
A project to rebuild the Opossum Lake dam in Lower Frankford Township has received a $1.5 million state grant — money those involved in the project say is critical to return the lake to its normal water level.
In fall of 2005, the state Fish and Boat Commission had to lower the 59-acre lake’s water level by 14 feet amid concerns about the safety of the dam’s spillway.
Commission officials said the spillway needed to be replaced, at an estimated cost of roughly $3 million.
The commission, Cumberland County and Lower Frankford Township had raised about $1.5 million on their own before news of the grant.
“This is huge,” said Brian Barner, a deputy director with the commission. “We hope this is the missing funding piece.”
The grant came via the efforts of state Sen. Pat Vance, R-31, who secured it from the state’s capital budget.
“This funding opens the way for the project to proceed,” Vance said in a statement. “Opossum Lake is a treasure and a vital part of the county’s recreational and tourism-related resources. It is important not only to those who live in the area, but to the entire county.”
The news thrilled members of the Friends of Opossum Lake Conservancy, who said its timing is especially important because the county money, part of the Growing Greener II program, needs to be spent by 2010.
“We had an uncertain future to see if the lake was going to be drained completely,” said Ed Franco, president of the conservancy.
The grant is a “very big deal,” he said.
The Fish and Boat Commission will begin soliciting bids on the project after it finishes its own study to determine the exact cost, Barner said.
He doesn’t expect construction to begin before the summer.
