TUD Awards $4.1-Million Phoenix Lake Contract
Sonora, CA — Construction is anticipated to commence as early as next month on a $4.1 million improvement project at Phoenix Lake.
The contract was awarded by the Tuolumne Utilities District to Steve Manning Construction with a unanimous 5-0 vote by the board of directors.
The district reports, “During the construction phase of the project, the lake water level must be kept as low as possible to allow the lake-bed to dry. This will allow the contractor to excavate and haul the dry soil out of the reservoir and place it on the adjacent Indigeny Apple Ranch Orchards to the north of the reservoir.”
Phoenix Lake reservoir is allowed to store up to 850 acre feet of water, but sediment that has accumulated over the years has reduced it to around 600 acre feet.
Water storage capacity will be restored by removing accumulated sediment. In addition, the water quality will be improved through retention of particles, increasing water depth, establishing better circulation patterns, and enhancing aquatic habitat.
A majority of the project costs will be covered by Proposition 84 state grant dollars.
Phoenix Lake, located approximately three miles east of the City of Sonora, is the primary water source for Sonora, Jamestown, Scenic View and Mono Village.
