The Curtis Pond Dam is more than 100 years old and has been classified as in poor condition and a “significant hazard” for nearly 20 years. As early as 2001, the state declared that “the overall condition of the dam is poor and requires repairs.” The reports have gotten clearer and clearer as the years tick by. You can review over 20 years of Curtis Pond Dam Safety Inspection Reports here.
Over the years the last two decades many people have invested an enormous amount of effort to try to repair the dam. The Curtis Pond Association would like to thank all the folks who worked hard to get the dam repaired. Without their prior efforts, we could not have made the progress that we have made.
Curtis-pond-dam-timeline – Check out how much work done over the years! Here’s a summarized list of the efforts over the last 20 years.
Click below for an interesting look at the history of the ownership of the Curts Pond Dam. The ownership of the dam over the last 20 years has been the largest challenge to each significant effort to repair the dam. That’s why one of our first challenges was to solve that issue, which we have! The legal legwork is complicated, but the gist is that once it’s fixed the Town of Calais will take permanent ownership. curtis-pond-dam-ownership-history
State of Vermont DEC report on dam ownership, 5/25/2003
Below are a number of documents related to the Calais Selectboards efforts to repair the dam in 2013, including the state permit application and the final design plans from engineering firm Dubois and King. Though a lot of effort was put into the process at that time, holdups and confusion of dam ownership, and who should pay for the project, ended in permits not being submitted and the project put on indefinite hold. The Dam Exploratory Committee has been able to pick up where they last left off and have solved the major issues which halted progress previously. With our signed Memorandum of Understanding with the Calais Selectboard, we have a clear path towards saving our pond for generations to come.
Below are a series of documents relating to the efforts to repair the dam in the early 2000’s. Even though an enormous amount of effort was put forth, this push also failed to materialize, largely held up on the same big questions. To learn more about the issues of Ownership and Funding, check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
7-11-2001-title-letter-to-town
10-7-2003-report-curtis-pond-dam-construction-repair-project
Fall 2003 Curtis Pond Watershed Survey
1-3-2004 Engineering Study for the Rehabilitation of Curtis Pond Dam by Dubois & King
2-23-2004-slides-beyond-sandbaggin
Curtis Pond Association 