Changes proposed at Katy Allen Lake

A meeting was held Wednesday with state officials at Katy Allen Lake, in Nevada, to discuss the future of the Birdscape Project and a possible changing of the face of the lake. Cecil Pritchett, president of the Osage Valley Resource, Conservation and Development Council and head of the Birdscape project, hopes to transform the Katy Allen Lake into a wetlands area -- complete with decorative gardens for birds and butterflies. In addition to the gardens the plan calls for walking trails to encircle the lake that would be handicapped and elderly accessible, plus an outdoor class room and a mini-convention center. To make the lake into a wetland, the water level would have to be lowered an estimated two feet, because the lake is mostly filled with sediment. One of the concerns about the current condition of the dam is its soundness in a flood situation. During a tour it was noted that both of the spillways leak and there was small hole in the center of the dam and possible seepage at the base. "It's deteriorated down to nothing," said Pritchett. Included in the state officials at Wednesday's meeting was Richard Purcell, State Conservation Engineer. With Purcell's help several hurdles associated with the proposed Birdscape Project were identified. Since the lake drains through an urban area -- down Locust Street and crossing Austin before leaving the city -- the hazard level of the project increases. The higher the hazard level, the more demanding the structural requirements of the dam will be. In addition, Purcell said that workers would probably have to remove the entire embankment and put in a new dam. "It will be a very expensive renovation," he said. Katy Allen Lake was originally built as a reservoir to hold water used in steam engines on the Katy Railroad line. A concrete stone on one of the spillways of the dam claimed that the structure was built in 1907. "Now that the city's grown up around the lake we are trying to do something with it," said Pritchett.