Montgomery OKs study with state over potential removal, modifications to Fox River dam

The Montgomery Village Board has taken a step towards the eventual removal or modification of the dam on the Fox River located south of the Ashland Avenue bridge.

Board members voted 5-0 Monday, April 25, to approve a memorandum of understanding between the village and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources committing the two agencies to complete a study of the dam.

A portion of the memorandum notes that both the village and the IDNR are “each in favor of developing a plan for the removal of or modification of the dam to restore stream connectivity upstream and downstream of the dam, to allow for safe canoe and kayak passage, and to increase the general environmental health of the river in the vicinity of the dam.”

The state through the IDNR owns the dam.

Prior to balloting, board member Dan Gier restated his opposition to the removal of the dam.

“I will vote for the study, but I would like us to really consider alternatives to removing the dam,” Gier said. “I think it really brings a lot of people to the village. It’s been here for a quite a few years, and it’s just a nice area and every weekend there are a lot of people there fishing.”

Gier added that he believes having the dam “sets the village apart” from other area communities.

Peter Wallers, CEO and president of Engineering Enterprises, Inc., the village’s engineering consultants, told the board the decision concerning the future of the dam would be made after the study is completed.

Village President Matt Brolley noted the IDNR has been tasked with removing dams on rivers throughout the state, but the agency currently lacks the funding to do so.

Brolley said IDNR officials want to spend what money they have in communities where they are wanted.

By approving the agreement for the study, Brolley said the village is notifying the IDNR that village officials want to work with them in determining the dam’s future rather than have the agency do so without direct village input.

“If there is a way we can accomplish their goal of safety and fish passage and at the same time have some recreational benefit by opening up the channel or whatnot, that’s my goal,” Brolley said.

The state constructed the dam in 1967 as part of a public works project championed by the late Gov. William Stratton that was intended to make the river navigable for boaters from McHenry County south to Kendall County.

But while the Montgomery dam was completed, a channel along the east bank of the river that was intended to one day serve as a boater bypass was never finished. Instead, a portion of the river dead-ends into the channel adjoining the dam.

Last July 26 the board voted unanimously to adopt a resolution that called for the village and the IDNR to negotiate the agreement that identified the scope of the study.

At that time, Wallers said in proposing the study the IDNR was seeking to make the dam safe while also trying to improve fish passage and the environmental quality of the river.

When questioned by board member Steve Jungermann, Wallers said most experts would support the removal of the dam on environmental grounds.

“It creates a dead zone on the upstream side and it promotes algae blooms and things like that. Overall, I think most folks will tell you elimination of dams makes for a healthier river. I think there might be some opposing views because of other things, but from a water-quality standpoint it’s better for the health of the river,” he said.

Wallers said the dam provides no flood control function and its removal would not affect local flood levels.

Board member Doug Marecek expressed hope the IDNR will be agreeable to opening up the channel as a boater bypass.

“It would be a great feature for us as we are trying to create interest in our downtown,” Marecek said.