The Henry County Board of Commissioners will be voting on special tax districts for dams in Henry County. The tax district would apply to communities that border lakes and would be applicable to Category 1 dams — dams that can cause loss of human life — and Category 2 dams, which are those that have the potential to impact county roads or other public infrastructure. Properties within the district would be taxed to pay for bonds acquired by Henry County to assist property owners in dam rehabilitation and repair. There are nearly 30 Category 1 and just over 50 Category 2 dams in Henry County, according to the draft ordinance. A study had been in the works since 2013 to look at what can be done to revitalize dams that could pose a threat. Several people spoke from Lake Dow and they said the dam is a Category 1 dam because there are residents in the flood release below the dam. The dam is not dangerous to the extent it is ready to break; it has a problem with the spillway. The water from upstream is gathering too quickly in the lake because of the building of homes from upstream. This problem about the dams has been an issue for years now. It was brought to our attention several years ago by the late Leon Forrer who had already looked at the State reports on the safety of dams in Henry County. For some reason, this has been a very slow process on something that could pose a serious life threat if the dams were to fail.
Staff of the Community News Blog
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