Popular Tibble Fork Reservoir closed for summer due to construction


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TIBBLE FORK RESERVOIR — Anyone planning a fishing trip to Tibble Fork Reservoir this summer will need to reschedule. The recreation area will be closed until December due to a major construction operation.

The construction began Tuesday and will include updates to the dam at Tibble Fork Reservoir so that it meets safety criteria, according to officials from the North Utah County Water Conservation District and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. The reservoir, part of the parking lot area and Trail No. 41 will be closed until Dec. 31, and visitors are being asked to avoid those areas.

While half of the north parking lot will remain open and cabin owners will still have access to their properties, visitors should be careful due to heavy machinery in the area.

“We’ve made many engineering advances since Tibble Fork was built in 1966,” NRCS Utah state engineer Bronson Smart said in a statement. “This rehabilitation project will give us the opportunity to increase water storage capacity — good for both agriculture and recreation — make much needed improvements to stability, and extend the dam’s life by more than 50 years.”

The $7.3 million project will not only improve the condition and safety of the recreational area, but it will also benefit the cities of Highland, Cedar Hills, American Fork and Pleasant Grove with continued flood prevention, water supply and sediment retention, officials said.

Some of the changes to the area will include raising the dam crest 15 feet, placing additional earth fill on the downstream face for stability to the access road on top of the dam, replacing the existing auxiliary spillway and raising it 13 feet and enlarging the reservoir surface area from 9.8 acres to 21.6 acres.

The parking lot will also be expanded from 83 spaces to 60 passenger vehicle spaces and 25 truck/trailer spaces. A new 1.1-acre gravel parking area will also be added at the base of the dam.

“Tibble Fork is a popular destination for Utahns,” Smart said. “It will look very different during construction, but the final design will make the dam safer and increase access to recreation. It will be better than before when we’re done.”

This construction project comes almost a year after the Silver Lake Flat Dam in American Fork also received a major construction update in September 2015.

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Faith Heaton Jolley

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