HINCKLEY TOWNSHIP, Ohio — Labor Day weekend marks one of the last chances nature-goers can fully enjoy one of Northeast Ohio's favorite watering holes.
Hinckley Lake in Medina County is about to be drained beginning September 18 as part of a nearly three-year restoration project.
Cleveland Metroparks leaders said in a release it's time to drain this 87-acre man-made lake and reinforce it so it can last another hundred years.
According to Cleveland Metroparks leaders, the initial phase of the project will include temporarily draining Hinckley Lake while crews work to remove silt deposits that have accumulated over the last century from the Rocky River.
The $9 -10 million project will help lift the height of the dam embankment and clean out the amount of silt that has made its way into the lake.
The lake ranges in depth from 2-16 feet deep.
The aim of the work is to have the dam and the 150-foot-wide spillway meet "modern standards and provide improved protection in the event of severe flooding."
The project is estimated to cost between $8-9 million.
History of the dam
Finished in 1927, the dam is the most prominent feature of the 87-acre manmade Hinckley Lake. The lake is home to bass, carp, catfish, trout, and bluegill, according to the Cleveland Metroparks.
The Ohio Division of Wildlife stocks about 2,400 rainbow trout every April at the lake and anglers can keep up to five rainbow trout and two bass (minimum size 12") per day.
Access to Hinckley Lake will be closed once dam rehabilitation begins, however, Hinckley Reservation will remain open throughout the project's expected completion of summer 2026.
Clay LePard is a special projects reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on Twitter @ClayLePard or on Facebook Clay LePard News 5.
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