This is an update on the Lake Cherokee dam repair and planned drawdown. Originally, our plan was to draw the lake down late winter/early spring 2025 to perform some needed repairs on the dam necessitated by the Sept ’24 storm. The South Carolina DES (formerly DHEC) has been involved in the discussions and planning for our repairs since October ’24; as has our consulting engineer and the contractor. We submitted our full proposal for the work to DES on Feb 3, and just recently received a three-page response detailing 17 additional items that they want changed or clarified. Needless to say, this was an unwelcome response from DES, who up until now seemed to be very cooperative and accommodating. We will now begin the process of pushing back on some of their unreasonable requests, making changes for their reasonable requests, and providing more information where needed. This will take some time to get done and will cause an unacceptable delay to the start of the lake drawdown and repair project. These additional requirements put us far behind on our original schedule and have forced the decision to adjust our plans and work schedule. Since we will soon be entering the fish spawning season as well as the spring boating season, we will delay the lake drawdown and dam repair until the late fall/ winter of 2025/2026. While the dam is in need of repairs, it is not in crisis and is not in danger of failure. Another severe storm occurring prior to our repairs this winter could cause more damage, so to mitigate this risk we may be doing some temporary reinforcing work this spring and summer which will not require a lake drawdown.

I will also step up the normal inspections of the dam with assistance from the dam committee members to be sure things are not deteriorating throughout the coming months. While this schedule change will likely cause some inconvenience, it is the best course of action at this point. The goal was always to accomplish the repairs with as little impact on the lake community and fish stock as possible, and deferring to this coming winter is the best way to accomplish that. So now you can get your boats back in the water and begin enjoying the spring on our beautiful lake! As always, feel free to reach out with any questions.

Chris Caldwell

Dam Committee, Chair

864 616 9542

As many of you have heard, the Lake Cherokee dam suffered some damage during the storm that occurred on Sept 26th of 2024. The discharge pipe which discharges the lake water into the creek below the dam became displaced and damaged due to the high forces exerted on it by the incredible rush of water. The remainder of the dam was not damaged, and overall, it remains in good shape. Some repair work on the lower section of pipe, however, must be done to prevent more damage from another storm. The repairs will bring the dam back up to 100%. This was a 100 year plus rain event for this area, so we should feel blessed that the damage to our dam was relatively minor and that most of it held up very well.

The Dam Committee has been working on solutions, and on Jan 25, 2025 a presentation was made to the board detailing the extent of the damage, the estimated cost to repair, and the estimated repair schedule. The board voted unanimously to move forward with the repairs as soon as possible.

The repair will require a lake drawdown of approximately 10 feet for a period of 6 to 8 weeks. The exact date that this drawdown will begin has not yet been finalized because we are trying to coordinate with the contractor’s schedule, as well as confirming material availability. This date is likely to be toward the end of February, and in the interest of providing all property owners with as much advanced notice as possible I am informing you of this impending drawdown.

Once the official date is announced, you will have a full 2 weeks’ notice to prepare before water drawdown begins. This will give you plenty of time to get your boats out and take care of anything else necessary to accommodate the low water level. Because of the long duration of the drawdown, you may also wish to plan for any work on your docks that require a low water level. Some docks suffered damage during the September storm and the high water level it brought, so this might be a good time to repair them. This will also present an ideal opportunity to remove downed trees, if you are wanting to, and to re-align and re-set your buoys according to the bylaws.

Approximate timeline of drawdown and repair

• Open valves and draw down the water level, 1 week
• Dam soil draining time with water level down (required by the consulting engineer) 2 weeks
• Construction and Repairs, 3 weeks
• Close valves and refill the lake, 2 weeks

These times are estimates and are not set in stone.

Please feel free to reach out to the Dam Committee chairman, Chris Caldwell at 864-616-9542 if you have any questions.