The Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District has recommended the removal of the Lower Lake Dam in Shaker Heights and Cleveland Heights, resulting in the draining of Lower Lake, replacing the lake bed with 17 acres of park land.
The district said draining the lake would prevent the risk of a catastrophic flood downstream along Doan Brook, the same reasoning it used in 2019, when the draining of historic Horseshoe Lake resulted in a furor in the East Side suburbs.
The latest "Sound of Ideas Community Tour" stopped at The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes to discuss the future of Lower Shaker Lake.
The evening kicked off with a bit of a history lesson from Steve Litt, Ideastream's freelance reporter who has been writing about the Shaker Lakes plans.
The audience then heard from Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells, the CEO of the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District on why the organization made their recommendation, as well as other stakeholders.
Penny Allen, the President of Friends of Horseshoe Lake argued against NEORSD's recommendation. Shaker Heights Mayor David Weiss spoke about the ownership of the land, the cost of various proposals, as well as how to work with the cities of Cleveland and Cleveland Heights.
The CEO of The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes discussed the environmental impact of a potential dam removal, and how the nature center would respond to any plan that emerges and continue to be stewards of the land.
The discussion was passionate and the panelists took a wide range of questions from the audience.
Guests:
- Steven Litt, Freelance Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
- Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells, Chief Executive Officer, Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
- David Weiss, Mayor, Shaker Heights
- Penny Allen, President, Friends of Horseshoe Lake
- Peter Bode, CEO, The Nature Center at Shaker Lakes
