Management firm to oversee Echo Lake project

BURLINGTON — City officials have started the process of securing engineering design and construction management services for the $9 million overhaul of Echo Lake.

Information about the project, which involves rebuilding a dam and dredging pollutants, is available at https://www.burlington-wi.gov/bids.aspx?bidID=23.

A mandatory pre-proposal site visit is scheduled for 10 a.m. Nov. 29 at Echo Park Pavilion, 589 Milwaukee Ave. Proposals are due Dec. 8.

Peter Riggs, the city’s public works director, said “the selected firm must have experience and demonstrated success with similar projects.”

Watch now: As the city debates the future of Echo Lake, Burlington residents explain why they want to save the manmade lake



The Burlington City Council is scheduled in February to select a firm, which must submit a plan for DNR approval by June 1.

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Another round of bidding is planned in late 2024, with contracts awarded in January 2025 for construction.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources notified city officials in 2015 that the manmade dam at Echo Lake was no longer adequate to meet state flood-control standards and gave the city 10 years to bring the dam and lake into compliance.

The city had to choose between rebuilding the dam, or removing the dam and allowing the 70-acre Echo Lake impoundment to drain into the White River, which flows through the site.

The Burlington Park Board called for removing the dam and creating a new riverfront attraction. But in November 2022 public referendum, voters favored a scenario in which the dam would be rebuilt and the lake preserved.

Watch now: As the city debates the future of Echo Lake, Burlington residents explain why they want to remove the manmade lake



Engineers estimated saving the lake would cost about $5 million, while removing the dam and draining the lake could be achieved for about $1.5 million.

With optional amenities included to improve the site as a public recreation resource, the price tag has grown to $9.1 million. The city has included $10 million for the project in a long-term capital improvement plan.

The state has approved a $1 million grant to help Burlington pay for the project.

City officials estimate saving Echo Lake could cost property owners an average of $2,800 each in higher taxes. Removing the lake would have cost $409 on average.