Peninsular Paper Dam

The Peninsular Paper Company, the dam, and power station in the early 1900s

The first dam was built on the site by the Peninsular Paper Company as early as 1867. At the same time, a large paper mill was constructed on the south side of the river, and a smaller one was built directly across the river in 1876. The smaller paper mill was heavily damaged by a fire in 1898. That mill was closed down, and the surviving equipment was moved to the larger facility. The original dam was replaced with the current dam in 1914. Heavy rain caused a dam failure on May 14, 1918 that caused considerable damage to some bridges further downstream, and the dam was completely repaired within two years. The larger facility remained in operation until 1970.[4]

In 1986, the city of Ypsilanti acquired the land with intent to restore it or convert the facilities for other usage, but the ideas never materialized before it was decided to demolish the remaining structures. The larger south-side paper mill was demolished in 2004 to make room for two residential apartment buildings called the Peninsular Place Apartments. The only remaining remnant of this paper mill is the original chimney that now stands in the courtyard of the apartment complex.[4]

The hollowed out exterior of the smaller north-side paper mill and signage remains standing. The surrounding area has been reorganized as Peninsular Park and is a popular destination for picnickers and shore fishermen.[5] The dam is directly across North Huron River Drive from the main campus of Eastern Michigan University.

In September 2018, the city of Ypsilanti and the Huron River Watershed Council conducted a report to assess the feasibility of removing the Peninsular Dam and remaining structures. The report concluded that dam removal is feasible. The dam has a "high" hazard potential classification, which means a high degree of damage will result if the dam should fail in the future. The structural integrity of the dam is rated by the State of Michigan as poor. An early estimated cost of the repair of the dam exceeded $800,000, which included the removal of the historic building. Excluding the building, the cost of repair was $585,000, most of which could be funded by a grant from the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE). The report stated the possibility of maintaining the existing connected powerhouse structure and sign atop it, as the structure poses no hazard and is an iconic feature in the area.[6] Hydroelectric generation is also once again being considered for the dam. The dam is capable of producing 11,500 kW-hrs per day.

On May 7, 2019, the Ypsilanti city council voted 5–1 to approve an initial $500,000 toward the deconstruction of the dam instead of continuing maintenance of it. In 2019, Upon further assessment, the total cost of removing the dam is estimated at $2.7–4.3 million, which does not include engineering costs, cost of permitting, the cost of mitigation of the sediment, which contains toxic materials, the cost of railroad bridge scouring mitigation, the cost of restoration of the uncovered land, and cost of bank stabilization. No future timeline has been set, although the surrounding parkland may be preserved and possibly upgraded. [2][3][6]