The City of Tempe is preparing to release the remaining water from Tempe Town Lake.
The City of Tempe finished diverting water into the SRP canal system this week. Tempe and its contractors SRP and PCL Construction are working with the Flood Control District of Maricopa County on a safe, slow release of the remaining water within the next few days.
Some water will remain at the base of the original dam, as a concrete lip will prevent it from traveling downstream, but most of it will continue downstream. The water released will benefit a riparian habitat ecosystem in the Salt River channel between Town Lake and the Priest Road bridge, a joint project undertaken a decade ago between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the City of Tempe.
In the last month, Tempe diverted 1,219 acre-feet (397 million gallons) of water from Town Lake into the SRP canal system, saving valuable water resources as well as taxpayer money. SRP is giving exchange credits to Tempe for that water to be used when the lake is refilled.
This week, Maricopa County and Tempe officials searched the downstream area for people who may have campsites in the riverbottom to inform them they need to move – water is coming. The City of Tempe wants to remind everyone that the Salt River in Tempe and the empty bottom of Tempe Town Lake are no trespassing areas for safety’s sake.
Tempe will continue monitoring shallow pools of water for fish and treating the lake to reduce possible insects and odors.
The city expects to begin refilling the lake in mid-April.