The Town of Lancaster hired Pare to complete a regulatory Phase I Inspection of the Bartlett Pond Dam in Lancaster, Massachusetts. The inspection identified extensive structural issues with the concrete dam structure. As a result, the Town requested a Phase II Evaluation of the dam, requiring more detailed analyses, development of alternative repair approaches to address dam safety deficiencies, and provide opinions of probable cost for the repair alternatives. The Phase II Evaluation also considered dam removal and stream restoration of Wekepeke Brook as an option.
The Town identified dam removal and stream restoration as the preferred approach. Pare completed studies to evaluate sediment quality, model potential impacts of dam removal upon the hydraulics of the stream channel upstream and downstream of the dam, and further review potential costs. Pare also attended public outreach hearings to present the project to residents and answer questions.
Working with a project team that included the MA Department of Ecological Restoration and a landscape architect (to complete designs for an adjacent park), Pare completed the design and permitting of the removal in less than one year. Construction activities commenced in May 2014 with the dam fully removed by the end of the month. Pare then submitted documentation to the MADCR Office of Dam Safety documenting the dam removal and requesting the delisting of the site as a dam.
