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Goose Pasture Tarn Dam Rehabilitation Project will begin May 2021

The Goose Pasture Tarn Dam will undergo a three-phase rehabilitation project starting in May 2021. The project was originally planned to begin in 2020. The town has stated that the decision to postpone the project decision was “heavily influenced” by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Eli Pace / epace@summitdaily.com |

BLUE RIVER — The Goose Pasture Tarn Dam Rehabilitation Project was discussed at a virtual town hall hosted by the town of Breckenridge, as the town had previously postponed the project until 2021. Greg Monley, project design engineer, said that the construction schedule is about the same as the one that was originally set for 2020, but has been pushed back by one year and is now scheduled to begin in May 2021. 

The project is expected to take three years with two winter shutdowns of the project where the reservoir — the Goose Pasture Tarn — will be allowed to refill and operate as before. The first two phases of construction include the initial excavation and work on the west side of the spillways, which will take place from May to August of 2021, and work on the upstream slope, which will take place from August to September of 2021 and require draining the reservoir. 

Phase II will take place from May to September of 2022. Work during this phase will include reconstructing the spillway and lowering the reservoir’s water level about 18 feet. In September, dam outlet work will require draining the reservoir again.



Construction will be completed from June to September of 2023 in Phase III.

The town will offer water assistance on a case-by-case basis to people with domestic wells who experience interruptions caused by dam work as the reservoir is lowered and drained. Town officials can be reached through the contact information listed on TownOfBreckenridgeGPTD.com.



For residences that need or request water assistance, the town is looking at locating water tanks at individual homes and connecting them to the home water line. Some residents near the reservoir have already received letters from the town. 

“The bottom line is that if you have a well that is located within, say, about 350 feet of the reservoir you’re probably going to see some drop or reduction in your water column above your pump that might be 5 feet or greater so it’s going to very much depend on where you are, where your well is and also where the screen is located in your well,” Monley said. 

The preliminary traffic control plan is to have truck traffic that comes onto Lakeshore Loop travel in a one-way direction from Lakeshore Loop down to the water treatment plant, into the project area. Trucks will exit via Wagon Road onto Colorado Highway 9. The plan also proposed a one-way direction for residential traffic along Lakeshore Loop where cars can follow a one-way exit onto Highway 9 while construction occurs. 

“We proposed this plan as a way to allow those residents that live in this area to quickly enter in in a clockwise fashion and then exit out at their leisure during the construction periods of the project,” Breckenridge Public Works Director James Phelps said. 

Town hall participants asked about recreation and wildlife. Blue River Town Manager Michelle Eddy said the tarn will be closed to recreation during construction. Phelps said that as a result of draining down the tarn’s fish will not be saved and the tarn will no longer contain fish. He said the tarn may be restocked with fish after the project is complete.


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