MnDNR to partially draw down Lake Bronson starting this week

By Anna Jauhola
A partial drawdown of Lake Bronson is set to begin this week, just prior to activities leading to the dam reconstruction project.
Ames Construction of Burnsville, Minn., was officially awarded the project bid on Tuesday, Aug. 6. However, the Minnesota Department of Administration didn’t update its website with this information until Wednesday, Sept. 11.
After a pre-construction meeting with the state on Thursday, Sept. 12, there is a clearer timeline for the project. Jason Boyle, state dam safety engineer, said Ames Construction has a provisional notice to proceed and has submitted a tentative mobilization date of Tuesday, Oct. 1.
“They still have to get all their submittals to us, and we still have to approve them to allow Ames to do work,” Boyle said. “Like the water control plan, we don’t have that yet. So that Oct. 1 date is likely to change.”
The last information Ames must submit is a certificate of insurance and then the DNR can issue a final notice to proceed.
In the meantime, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced last week they will partially draw down Lake Bronson starting this week. The 4-foot drop is necessary for engineers to evaluate the dam structure and its gates.
“This inspection follows observations of the spillway gates during late summer that indicated temporary safety measures may be needed to ensure the ability to continue to operate the gates safely,” the DNR stated in a press release.
Boyle said two of the gates are having issues and only one is fully functional. Although there is no cause for concern, the partial drawdown is a pre-emptive measure to ensure functionality.
“We want to be prepared in case there would be a fall flood, like the one that happened a few years ago. We wouldn’t want to be stuck with one gate,” Boyle said.
With the dam reconstruction project starting so soon, those gates will be maintained to operational status but not repaired.
During the partial and full drawdowns, access to the lake will be prohibited. Ben Bergey, northwest regional manager of Minnesota Parks and Trails, said public safety is a big concern.
“We expect for the first several months, this area will be extremely soft,” he said of the lakebed. “We’ll close access points for the beach and public water access, and other areas around the lake.”
Access to the lakebed will be totally prohibited also due to sensitive and known cultural resources from people who inhabited the area in the past. This includes homestead and other sites from ancient Native Americans to the pioneers who settled the area, Bergey said.
“Our goal is to keep as much of the park open to the public as possible,” he added. “The campground by the lake will be closed. Construction noise would have a significant impact on campers’ experiences.”
The Two Rivers Campground will be open throughout construction, however. There are 96 campsites available in the three loops of this campground.
The DNR will hold a public information meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 1 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Visitors Center at Lake Bronson State Park. The meeting will go into more details about the dam reconstruction project and give people the opportunity to ask questions. The vehicle permit requirement will be waived during the meeting.
Plans to replace the Lake Bronson Dam have been in the works for more than 10 years. The 2020 bonding bill provided $20 million to move the project forward. In 2023, the DNR secured another $4 million to further fund the project. That same year, Kittson County received a $2 million grant from the State Park Road Account to build the bridge and road above the new dam as the county owns those structures.
Ames Construction bid $28,492,398.28 for the project. The engineers estimated it would cost $25,665,478.
To cover the rest of the funds needed, the DNR secured money from its own Natural Resource Asset Preservation Funds, Boyle said.