Lake panel reviews $9 million flood outlet plan

Other Committee · Meeting of October 22, 2026

Southwick's lake panel reviewed a narrowed, $9 million flood-control option for the Congamond Lakes. The Lake Management Committee heard Thursday that a federal study has ruled out restoring Canal Brook and Great Brook as outlets, with a committee member calling that approach "impossible to really fix" and pricing full restoration at $135 million to $222 million. The preferred alternative, a new auxiliary outlet at North Pond, is pegged at $9 million to $15 million and would let the town draw down lake levels up to six inches a day before major storms.

A committee member separately said a state watershed-quality study may be targeting the wrong jurisdiction, noting "the majority of the watershed contributors to our water quality issues are actually on the Connecticut side." The panel also learned the state halted excavation at a Berkshire Street site until spring and that a vehicle pulled from the lake on October 14 caused no injuries or fuel leak.

In the full story:

• Who Was There
• Organizations And Documents Referenced
• The complete report — 2,262 words

Source: the Other Committee meeting of October 22, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.

Checked against the record: before publication this article was automatically compared with the meeting transcript.