Company will perform safety, maintenance work on dam

Hundreds of anchor bolts at Byllesby Dam in Cannon Falls will be sandblasted and painted in the coming months to limit rust and corrosion issues at the 100-year-old structure.

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission - the agency that regulates the dam - found issues with the bolts during its 2009 annual inspection and ordered the maintenance work.

"This is a safety issue," Commissioner Dan Rechtzigel said Tuesday. "The bolts are what hold the dam and keep the water from flowing."

Work on the bolts - plus additional painting projects - will cost $84,810. Goodhue County will pay $33,924. Dakota County will pay the rest.

Dakota and Goodhue counties are responsible for operation and maintenance of the dam, which has given officials headaches the past few years.

The counties sued North American Hydro Holdings - the damn's former operator - over nearly $300,000 in unpaid rent, interest and penalties, and severed business ties with the company last year.

Goodhue County Attorney Stephen Betcher said Tuesday the legal battle has not been settled.

Meanwhile, federal officials have ordered substantial upgrades at the dam so it can handle the probable maximum flood, a flood so large it would likely happen once every 10,000 years.

Those upgrades could cost Dakota and Goodhue counties millions of dollars.

Money for the sandblasting and painting will come from the county's dam fund.

Public Works Director Greg Isakson said the county did receive a lower bid than the one commissioners OK'd Tuesday, but that he recommended the county go with Bretschneider Co. because of its extensive experience and detailed safety plan.

"This is one of those situations where you don't want to get a rookie in there who doesn't know what he's doing," Isakson said. "It's a very dangerous situation."

Bids for the project ranged from $68,700 to $210,000.

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