LUBBOCK, Texas (KCBD) – A portion of Buffalo Springs Lake is off-limits to visitors while construction crews work to upgrade McMillan Dam.
Lake Manager Greg Thornton said access to McMillan Dam, the nearby nature trail and fishing areas are closed, for now, as crews work on the project.
“You know, we want our customers to enjoy the lake. But for right now, we’ve got to do a little housekeeping,” Thornton said.
Thornton posted a reminder on the lake’s Facebook page asking visitors to follow “Road Closed” signs.
“We just got started 30 days ago and people aren’t quite used to not being able to come down here and fish yet,” Thornton said. “This is a really popular area on the lake for fishing and the nature trail. And until the end of the year, until we get done moving the dirt for the dam project, we just need everybody to avoid this area.”
Construction on McMillan Dam has begun after a lengthy engineering and bidding process. Lubbock County received $8 million in ARPA funding to widen and update the dam.
“$8 million to our little community is a big deal,” Thornton said. “We wouldn’t have been able to afford to fix, to do this preemptive repair.”
Thornton said that for the next few months, about 100 trucks a day will move 70,000 cubic yards of dirt from a borrow pit to the dam.
He said the closure is about safety because crews are using large trucks, excavators, dozers and loaders in the area.
“And you just don’t see a little car or people,” Thornton said. “And the main thing is we just don’t want anybody to get hurt. They don’t want anybody to get hurt. It’s a safety thing.”
While the dam project is being funded through the government, Thornton said higher admission fees are paying for other recent upgrades.
Thornton said the lake’s $20 daily admission fee has helped keep workers paid, revamp the marina, reinforce shorelines, pave roads and clear out cattails. Visitors can access the marina after 5 p.m. for only $5 on weekdays.
Thronton hopes visitors will enjoy other parts of the lake while the area by the dam is blocked off.
The lake’s fireworks show is scheduled for July 3.
“They’re going to be the biggest ones we’ve ever had,” Thornton said. “The lake’s clean. It’s ready. And it’s safe. And it’s going to be a blast.”
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