The city of New Albany recently applied for permits from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources and the United States Army Corps of Engineers after doing work at a low-head dam the agencies have said was not authorized.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers, Louisville district has said they can’t accept the application submitted to that agency and say they’re still awaiting plans on how the city will reverse the unpermitted work.
The New Albany City Council is also taking steps to try to get information on how much money the city has spent to keep the dam in place.
The fate of the Providence Mill Dam, also known as the Glenwood Park Dam, has been uncertain for more than three years.
In 2021, a contractor for River Heritage Conservancy secured a state permit to remove the dam as part of Origin Park plans.
The city of New Albany has contested that at the state and local level, with Democratic Mayor Jeff Gahan saying he wants to see it modified instead of torn down.
He announced earlier this month he was directing what he called emergency maintenance to be done at the dam in Silver Creek, to eliminate the hydraulic roller below.
This came a little more than two months after 14-year-old Andre “AJ” Edwards Jr. drowned at the site, and three years into legal battles over what to do with the more than 100-year-old structure.
Within days of the mayor’s announcement, crews had installed rocks in front of the dam.
The Indiana Department of Natural Resources stepped in and told crews to stop the work, as they did not have permitting required under the Indiana Flood Control Act. Indiana DNR also issued Gahan an infraction for directing the work. Harrison County Prosecutor Otto Schalk confirmed he’s been tasked with reviewing the information to see if the infraction will be filed.
That same week, Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita’s office filed a civil complaint seeking to prevent the city from doing any more work, and to reverse work already done.
According to court records, city attorney Shane Gibson told Indiana DNR Gahan had the authority to direct the work without a permit under the state’s Flood Control Act. He provided a copy of an executive order from Gahan declaring a state of emergency.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers also issued cease and desist orders in mid August, saying the city had violated the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 and the Clean Water Act.
The orders directed the city to reverse the work and to provide plans for doing so to the federal agency within 30 days, according to a news release.
If they don’t, Corps of Engineers spokesperson Katelyn Newton said in an email the violations of federal law could be turned over to the U.S. attorney.
Two days after the cease and desist orders were issued, the city applied for an “after the fact” permit, Newton confirmed.
She said the agency cannot accept the permit application because the action is already in enforcement litigation brought by the state attorney general’s office on behalf of Indiana DNR.
The city is also seeking a permit from Indiana DNR. City engineer Larry Summers applied for a permit last week for “Glenwood Park Dam Emergency Maintenance.”
The application states that lack of maintenance has created a dangerous situation and that filling it in with large shot rock “eliminated the hydraulic roller that existed which eliminated the imminent safety threat.”
It also states they want to do more work at the site.
“Additional material is needed to complete the necessary maintenance and return the site to its original condition,” it reads.
According to the application, “none of the activity will result in unreasonably detrimental effects upon fish, wildlife or property.”
A spokesperson with Indiana DNR confirmed that the agency had not acted on the application as of Thursday afternoon.
Some city council members also want to know how much the mayor’s administration has spent on keeping the dam in place.
The council approved a motion Thursday to request the administration provide information on how much the city has spent on litigating the dam over the past three years. The council hopes to have that information by Oct. 7, which is the day the council will take a final vote on adopting the 2025 city budget.
The motion was brought by Republican member Scott Blair, who said he has tried unsuccessfully to get the information since June. His motion initially called for the information to be provided by Sept. 16.
“We are taxpayers, taxpayers have a right to see how their money is being spent,” he said in the meeting. “And I'm just tired of waiting and getting the runaround or getting no response from [the] administration.”
An email sent to New Albany spokesperson Mike Hall Friday afternoon requesting comment wasn’t returned by publication.
Democratic Council President Adam Dickey, who voted against the motion, said he believed the administration was already working on gathering the information and that he would rather allow them to provide an update without giving them a deadline.
Blair proposed a second motion to request information on contracts and costs associated with the recent work at the dam. He said he had not yet requested this from the administration, but a constituent had. The motion failed 5-4.
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