Earlier this month, the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation held a public hearing to discuss the future of deteriorating Martin Dunham Dam in Grafton. Some residents are hoping the state will choose to maintain the dam and its reservoir.
A recent engineering study found that if the Grafton dam fails, downstream communities could be at risk. That finding came in a 2024-2025 Federal Emergency Management Agency-funded study that determined the dam is not in compliance with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s Dam Safety Requirements. While the study’s leaders made clear the dam itself isn’t dangerous, they said damage from a failure could pose a serious risk.
This is the backdrop as the state’s Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation now considers the future of the historic 98-acre dam, which controls the Martin Dunham Reservoir in Rensselaer County. The dam is owned by the state and operated as part of Grafton Lakes State Park. Originally built to serve as a water source for the city of Troy in 1911, the reservoir is now largely used for recreation.
During this month’s public hearing, NY Parks officials presented several options that are under consideration. These include rehabilitating the dam, removing part of the dam and restoring the channel, and removing the dam without channel restoration. All three options would reduce hazards, officials say.
Scott Peyton is a civil engineer with Stantec, an engineering consultant for the Parks Department. He says the study took into account several earth embankments when considering repairs, removals, or modifications. Peyton says the dam’s key issue is its spillway capacity is undersized.
“If a big storm event comes, it would be overwhelmed. It would be, and then the embankment would likely be breached, that would lead to a failure of the dam,” Peyton said.
Peyton adds the dam has some structural stability and seepage issues.
“It is a risk to the downstream community, to the infrastructure, to the roads, to the residents, to the schools, you know, to the bridges, everything that exists downstream of the dam if the dam were to fail,” Peyton said. “So, it is based on the location of the dam and downstream risk, not the condition of the dam. Okay, I want to make it clear that if, if the dam were to be repaired, upgraded, or even if a brand-new dam were built in the same location to the same size, it would also be a high hazard dam.”
Peyton says the dam is eligible for historic preservation.
The first rehabilitation option would cost an estimated $20 million and have no impact on infrastructure, sediment, wildlife and ecology and recreation, officials said.
Option two to partially remove the dam and restore the stream is estimated to cost $9.6 million. It would remove the gatehouse and spillway and require sediment management, and would improve habitat connectivity, but remove boating.
And option three, which would remove part of the dam but not restore the stream, would cost roughly $6.1 million. It would remove the gatehouse and spillway, require some sediment management, improve habitat connectivity and remove boating.
For options two and three, other kinds of recreation like fishing and hiking would remain.
Cropseyville resident Amy Modesti says losing the dam would increase the risk of disaster in heavy rain. She says losing the dam and reservoir would be “catastrophic.”
“As someone who has experienced damage from the hurricane [Hurricane Irene] as a result of heavy waters, it’s devastating for anybody to go through something like that, and I am all up for making sure that the Dunham is protected in a safe manner, that it is restored and is definitely kept as a historical piece because it is a part of our Rensselaer County community,” Modesti said. “It's a place of tourism where people can go and canoe, go boating, go fishing, go hiking, go biking, walking, even photo shoots if somebody wanted to do that.”
Concerns extend out of the county, too. John Bulmer lives in Saratoga County. Bulmer, a known regional photographer, says he’s spent thousands of hours in the area. He says option two, which would eliminate the lake, seems like a compromise to cut costs and keep some recreation.
“It would establish hiking trails, but the lake is a jewel,” Bulmer said. “It's one of the premier flat-water spots in Rensselaer County and around that region. And if you look at it strategically, the $9.6 million option eliminates the dam, so it eliminates future liability and it eliminates future repairs. So, I really hope that it goes to the full restoration, but I don't have high hopes for that.”
No funding for the project has been identified yet, according to Alane Ball Chinian, a regional director with the Parks Department. She says options could include the New York State Bond Act, FEMA, and an allocation at Parks for capital improvements.
