Tyler Dam Removal

The Washtenaw County Water Resource Commissioner (WCWRC) received an application and petition from Ypsilanti Township to establish a portion of the Willow Run Creek on the eastern edge of Washtenaw County as a county drain. A board of determination hearing found it necessary to proceed and the WCWRC hired Spicer Group to design improvements that would transform Tyler Pond, which was a fire-suppression pond for more than 70 years for nearby factories, into a county drain. Spicer Group created a solution that incorporated drawing down Tyler Pond, decommissioning the Tyler dam, and reconstructing the newly exposed ravine into a natural two-stage channel county drain.

To convert the newly drained pond into a free-flowing county drain, a new channel was excavated through sediment that had accumulated in the pond bottom. Additionally, more than a dozen outfalls from nearby residential and commercial areas were extended outwards into reinforced and armored channels. Live staking was placed along the banks and various seed mixtures were used to preserve their shape and protect against erosion