The 6-foot high Glen D. Palmer Dam crosses the Fox River, a 200+ mile long tributary of the Illinois River in Yorkville. As both a fishery and popular area for canoeists and kayakers on the Fox River, the area around the Palmer Dam required improvements to sustain a safer crossing for both people and aquatic life such as fish.
Significant effort went into studying the effects of existing and reconstructed dams on circulation patterns, water quality and winter ice formation conditions that could affect the Palmer Dam and the Fox River. Among the final improvements implemented were a canoe and fish bypass channel, unique shoreline stabilization, as well as native planting and landscaping. A Denil fish ladder-the first in Illinois-now furnishes protected fish passage across the dam.
Services
Civil, Structural, Landscape Architecture, Water Resources