Workers are scheduled to begin draining Irvine Lake Monday as part of a long-planned project to repair and upgrade Santiago Creek Dam, a move that has upset local anglers who use the fishing destination.
The project has been in the planning stages for about a decade and is intended to improve the dam’s safety and increase the lake’s water storage capacity.
According to the Irvine Ranch Water District, which manages the lake, the dam was built in 1933 and serves nearly a million residents.
“I don’t blame them,” Orange County Supervisor Don Wagner said of the anglers who fish in the lake. “It is unfortunate, but it is a reality that the Irvine Ranch Water District has to take. They’ve got to do repairs to the dam and water-intake system. It’s been planned for a long time, but they’re just getting around to doing it.”
Wagner said the plans for draining the lake were known in 2019, when the lake was reopened.
The water district began assessing the dam in 2017 and determined that while it remained functional, improvements were needed to bring it up to modern seismic and safety standards, according to the district.
The project is intended to increase storage capacity and capture more rainwater, reducing the region’s reliance on imported water.
Once completed, the improvements are expected to restore the lake’s capacity and provide an additional 3,700 acre-feet of water storage. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2030.