The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, invites the public to attend a project dedication and open house at Lock and Dam 3, near Red Wing, Minn., May 31 at 9 a.m.
The district recently completed nearly $70 million in improvements to the lock, and the work was completed without closing the lock to the navigation industry and pleasure craft operators. The project was also unique in the fact that it was the first time the district finished a plan as a design-build contract. This allowed the contractor to expedite the project delivery schedule.
Project improvements at the facility help navigation tow captains deal with unfavorable currents as a result of the lock being located on a bend in the river. The navigation improvements include an 862-foot-long guide wall extension, a closure dike that reduces adverse currents near the guide wall, channel dredging and the placement of approximately 150,000 cubic yards of material.
In addition to the navigation improvements, the Corps upgraded the natural embankments on the Wisconsin-side of the river. The lower embankment improvements include several thousand linear feet of earthwork and rock protection, concrete spillways and associated water-level control structures. The upper embankments improvements include reconstructing nine channel closures and rock protection near the dam. Collectively, these improvements reduce the risk of a catastrophic failure to the dam, which would rapidly reduce the water level within Pool 3.
Following the dedication, the public will be invited to view the improvements and visit the observation deck, which was closed for the past three years during the construction. The lock address is 4330 Lock & Dam Road, Welch, Minn.
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Press Release, May 20, 2013