The Boardman River Dams & Restoration Project has been awarded more than $1 million in grant funding for ongoing dam removal work on the Boardman River. The funds will be used for Phase II of the project that includes removal of Boardman Dam and replacement of the Cass Road bridge, and removal of Sabin Dam.

The grant awards are from numerous public and private sources:
$500,000 – U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Restoration Act Grant Program
$400,000 – Great Lakes Fishery Trust
$100,000 – U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, Great Lakes Basin Fish Habitat Partnership
$50,000 – Michigan Department of Environmental Quality
$25,000 – Rotary Charities of Traverse City
$10,000 – U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service National Fish Passage Program (awarded to the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa & Chippewa Indians

The project is currently in the early stages of Phase II, including data gathering and design for the removal of Boardman Dam and replacement of the Cass Road crossing. Construction at Boardman Dam is slated to begin in 2015 and removal of Sabin Dam is to occur no earlier than 2017.