The low dam spanning the Great Miami River south of downtown Hamilton will come down if a Miami Conservancy District project becomes reality.The project got a significant boost thanks to a $2.45 million grant award from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources' H2Ohio program.WCPO talked to MCD Executive Director Marylynn Lodor after the grant award. She told us the dams were popular in the 1970's and 1980's because they created a calm pool for boating and kayaking upstream of the dam."What was not known at the time, when those dams were put in, is that they're extremely dangerous," she said. "They're essentially known as drowning machines."WATCH: We talk with a fisher who's excited to see the dams come down Hamilton's low dams to be removed in river overhaul projectLodor told us the low dam has been connected to three deaths, three injuries and countless water rescues since it was built because the drop creates strong currents and turbulent water that can trap swimmers and kayakers."It's important to recognize that we can't leave it there as it is," she said.The initial grant from the ODNR will boost phase one of the project, rehabilitating the low dam.
But the conservancy district is looking to overhaul the stretch of the Great Miami River near Hamilton, including removal of the Two Mile Dam north of downtown for a total estimated cost of $7.66 million.While standing beside the Two Mile Dam, we talked with John Gambrel, who said he's lived in Hamilton for most of his life and remembers the waterway before the dams were built."This one really doesn't bother me," Gambrel said, pointing to the northernmost dam. "But I used to fish here a long time ago, and when they built that one down there, it killed the fishing. The fish don't get up here no more."Gambrel said he was looking forward to fish returning upstream."I'm glad they're getting rid of it," he said.The Miami Conservancy District said construction could begin in 2027 or 2028.
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