A report outlining options for the future of Drimmie Dam in Elora is available for public comment.
The environmental study on the rehabilitation of Drimmie Dam was done as part of an environmental assessment of the deteriorating dam in downtown Elora. It outlines options to address the poor state of the dam, which is nearly 100 years.
The preferred alternative is to build a new, but lower, dam in the same place at an estimated cost $1.25-million. That option was identified as the most cost-effective way of reducing potential flood damages in Elora and maintaining the heritage and economic benefits of the existing dam.
Residents were divided about the rehabilitation of the dam. Some wanted it because of the heritage and its commercial draw, and others felt is should simply be removed.
The dam is owned by the GRCA. Water from the pond created by the dam powers a hydroelectric generator in the nearby Elora Mill Inn.
Copies of the report are available at:
– Township Of Centre Wellington office, 1 MacDonald Square, Elora;
– Elora Public Library, 144 Geddes Street;
– GRCA head office, 400 Clyde Road, Cambridge; and
– on the GRCA website at www.grandriver.ca. Look for the link Drimmie Dam EA in the Resource Management section.
The deadline for comments is March 18. The project is still subject to financial arrangements being made, and obtaining necessary approvals from provincial and federal government departments.
