Milwaukee County could make big changes in the rebuilding of the Kletzsch Park dam

Facing opposition over plans to reconstruct the Kletzsch Park dam in Glendale, Milwaukee County has decided to evaluate other options that would preserve a picturesque spot on the Milwaukee River that has attracted visitors for generations.

The $1.3 million renovation currently calls for rebuilding the Depression-era dam, and the waterfall created by the dam, that brings onlookers and anglers.

In addition, the county’s plans currently envision a fish passage system around the dam and a scenic overlook and platform for fishing on the west side of the river, next to the Milwaukee River Parkway.

RELATED:Big changes are coming for Kletzsch Park — here's a look at the architectural drawings

Milwaukee County Parks officials introduced their vision of the project in January.

But since then, there has been mounting criticism, including a signature drive, about the scope of the project, the loss of century-old oak trees and the impact on cultural resources dating back to pre-European settlement. 

On Thursday, the County Board’s Finance and Audit Committee voted, 6-0, to more than double the size of the contract to a consulting firm, Inter-Fluve, to $417,894 to complete a final design for the project.

The firm is expected to go back to the drawing board and offer alternatives that would preserve trees, maintain the character of the river’s west bank and devise a separate fish passage on the east bank. 

The east bank includes both public and private land.

The full County Board will take up the matter Thursday. 

The county had planned to finish the project in 2019, but officials said that date may now be moved back.

While the Parks Department was planning to evaluate fish passage on the east side of the river after hearing the public reaction, County Board Chairman Theo Lipscomb Sr. added language before the vote requiring the department to address new alternatives and show how the final design will addresses objections. 

Parks officials would also be required to hold another public meeting. The final design would need approval from the board. 

Jeremy Lucas, director of administration and planning for parks, said no option has been ruled out. But attention will now focus on less disturbance and fish passage on the east side of the river. 

Lucas said the project faces numerous technical and regulatory hurdles. Any design must factor in regulatory requirements for flood control and the speed of water so it will not deter slower-swimming fish species.

The county is required by the state Department of Natural Resources to make repairs to the dam, which was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps.

Fish passage is an add-on, made possible with funds from the county, a federal Great Lakes program, the state’s land stewardship program and the Fund for Lake Michigan, which uses money from a legal settlement over pollution problems at We Energies’ Oak Creek power plant. 

Lipscomb, whose district includes the park, supported the initial design because of the amenities and the environmental benefits of fish passage that will expand habitat for fish populations further upstream.

The plans for Kletzsch come on the heels of the removal of the Estabrook Park dam in 2018. Together, they remove barriers that will allow fish to occupy a larger aquatic system stretching from Lake Michigan to Grafton — a change that will improve fish migration and reproduction. 

RELATED:Estabrook Park dam floodgates fall to demolition crew

“I thought we could tweak the design and address the concerns, but it became pretty clear there were more serious concerns with almost any activity on that west bank,” Lipscomb said in an interview.

“There is almost no way to eliminate anything that would affect those trees. I think there was a push to scale it way back. Even some said 'make the repairs you have to make — don’t do fish passage at all.' I don’t agree with that.”

In the 19th century, the site drew the attention of Increase Lapham, a naturalist and engineer — considered Wisconsin’s first scientist — who surveyed the oak savanna that once dominated the landscape.  

Martha Bergland, an opponent of the county’s initial design, is co-author with Paul Hayes of “Studying Wisconsin: The Life of Increase Lapham,” a 2014 biography published by the Wisconsin Historical Society Press. 

Bergland believes that some of the oak trees that would be lost would have been living in 1850 when Lapham recorded his observations of effigy mounds built by Native Americans.

“It’s a historically significant area,” Bergland said. “It was known to be a ceremonial important place.”

She said she is cautiously optimistic by Thursday’s developments.

“It seems better than it did the other day,” she said. “But I don’t think that this fight is over.’’