Following about two years of construction and over 10 years of planning, both dams to the Owl Creek Reservoir in Schuylkill County are officially completed and re-opened to the public.

The announcement was made Saturday morning during a ribbon-cutting ceremony held at the lower dam of the 900-acre preserve. The event was attended by members of the Owl Creek Reservoir Commission (OCRC), Tamaqua Borough, Benesch Engineering, South Ward Fire Company, as well as local, county and state dignitaries.Ending the ceremony, Tamaqua Borough Manager Kevin Steigerwalt unveiled a "SAVED" banner to the crowd."The project was money well spent," said OCRC volunteer Robert Reed of Tamaqua. "In addition to adding beauty, the new dams will help to provide more recreation and tourism to the area.""The reservoir has been an important resource for Tamaqua for so long," said Tamaqua councilman and Recreation Committee Chairman Dave Mace, who stated the reservoir is used for fishing, hiking, hayrides, boating and numerous community events. "It is important that we save the reservoir for another 100 years."Giving credit for saving the dam, Mace said his appreciation is to the Tamaqua area community, OCRC, Tamaqua Borough Council, borough workers and Benesch Engineering.Tamaqua Borough Council President Micah Gursky said the $6 million investment included a $1.5 million match borrowed by the borough."Completion for the project was a long-time coming," said Gursky, who pointed out the decision to save the dams was determined by Tamaqua residents, who voted on it in November 2009, during a referendum.Stepping up as one of the first community volunteers to help at the new dams was Cub Scout Chris Daynorwicz, 15. He said he plans to earn his Eagle Scout award by organizing and supervising new trails and clearing large brush alongside the lower dam.Project manager Jennifer Kowalonek, Benesch Engineering, said improvements to the new dams include 250,000 pounds of steel, 2,000 cubic yards of concrete and 2,000 cubic yards of earthen soil."The dams were built to withstand a 1,000-year storm," added Kowalonek, who said the dams were ordered to be replaced or repaired by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection."A goal of the project was not to affect areas downstream of the dams in case of high rains."In 2006, the dams almost overflowed as the area was hit with a 300-year storm, which resulted in the evacuation of homes downstream of the dams.The new lower dam consists of concrete dropbox and roller compacted spillway, while the upper dam consists of a concrete labyrinth spillway."We hope to gets certifications from DEP to refill the dams in the next few weeks," said Kowalonek.After receiving the certificates, borough workers will be responsible for filling the dams at a slow rate of about 1 foot per day, with the lower being filled first.Mace added that the lower dam was built in 1883, with the upper dam rose in 1921.Also, during the event, Benesch handed out shirts to all the volunteers that said SAVED.Also on hand during the event were Tamaqua Mayor Chris Morrison, councilman Tom Cara, Dan Evans, John Trudich, Schuylkill County Commissioner George Halcovage, state Sen. Dave Argall and state Rep. Jerry Knowles.Gursky said the borough couldn't have done it without the assistance and support from the Commonwealth Financing Authority, Argall, Knowles, borough council, borough workers, OCRC and the entire Tamaqua community."Tamaqua is blessed with many recreational opportunities," said Gursky, who added that people are the most important resource of the dams.Morrison spent time talking about good times he spent at the dams, most involving wildlife."If the community didn't say 'yes' to save the dams, we would be looking at an abandoned mud hole," said Argall, who added that the project is about providing recreation to our children and grandchildren. "This project serves as another success story for Tamaqua.""We commend the community for understanding the importance of this facility in terms of both water and recreation," said Knowles.'This was certainly a worthwhile project," said OCRC President Tom Banditelli.He added, that with continued support from the community, they will stay committed to keeping the reservoir a beautiful and fun place."I remember spending much of my younger life ice skating, cat fishing, tubing, and hiking at the dams," said volunteer Wanda Rhynes-Schmidt. "What a fun place.""Take a look around," said 10-year volunteer Steve Bayer. "We take water for granted. I'm really glad the community chose to take advantage of a great water resource. You simply can't put a price on water."In addition to the ceremony, visitors enjoyed hayrides around both dams, tours of a newly placed fire tower and photographs and aerial imagery of the Owl Creek Reservoir by Jeff Rimm.Longtime OCRC volunteer Georgine Wentz said the dams are open to the public 24 hours a day. Currently, there is no boating or fishing until water levels rise.