Community Meeting Set For Lower Monongahela River Project
The Pittsburgh Engineer District will update the public on the Lower Monongahela Project on December 12 as the project nears its final phase.
The public meeting, to be held at Elizabeth Borough Firehall, 107 Market St., Elizabeth, Pa. 15037, will include a 60-minute presentation followed by a question-and-answer session. Stations will also be set up after the presentation for community members to speak to district staff one-on-one about topics including the project’s history, current status, river levels, potential effects to nearby residents’ personal property and upcoming project activity.
“Many of these improvements go unnoticed by the residents and communities bordering the river,” said Steve Fritz, the district’s megaproject program manager. “However, there will be noticeable changes to river levels in 2024.”
In 1994, the Corps of Engineers began modernizing locks 2, 3 and 4 on the lower Monongahela River in the Braddock, Elizabeth and Charleroi communities, respectively. The Corps will begin removing Monongahela River Locks and Dam 3 in mid-2024. Removing Locks and Dam 3 is the final phase of the project after completing construction work at Locks and Dam 4 in Charleroi.
The initial phase of the project was completed in 2004 and included major construction work at Locks and Dam 2 in Braddock.
“This signifies the culmination of 30 years of engineering and construction efforts to modernize the navigation facilities on the lower Monongahela River,” Fritz said. “In addition to providing reliable river navigation for the next century, this project will return more than $200 million in annual benefits to the region and nation.”
More information about the project and related documents are available at https://www.lrp.usace.army.mil/Missions/Planning-Programs-Project-Management/Key-Projects/Lower-Mon-Project/.
