New $70K Grant Advances Study Of ‘Unsafe’ Dam In Marlborough, Sudbury

MARLBOROUGH, MA — Efforts to determine the future of an unsafe dam near the Marlborough-Sudbury border have received another financial boost.

The Healey-Driscoll administration awarded a $70,000 Environment and Climate One Stop grant for an inspection and alternatives analysis of Hager Pond Dam, state Sen. Jamie Eldridge announced on Monday. The Marlborough legislative delegation advocated for the funding.

The state award follows federal funding secured earlier this year by Marlborough and Sudbury leaders working with U.S. Sen. Ed Markey. That Federal Emergency Management Agency funding was intended to begin studying whether the dam should be repaired or removed, Patch previously reported.

The dam sits on the northeast side of Hager Pond, a few yards from Route 20 and Wayside Inn Road. Its concrete spillway leads into Hop Brook.

Eldridge has described the structure as one of the most unsafe dams in Massachusetts. A 2018 Associated Press investigation listed Hager Pond Dam among at least 39 dams statewide in poor or unsafe condition.

Officials have raised concerns that a dam failure could send water east toward homes, businesses and the historic Wayside Inn property.

“There’s concern that if this dam behind me broke,” homes and businesses could be flooded, Eldridge said when the federal funding was announced in April.

The Marlborough and Sudbury legislative delegations, municipal officials, dam abutters, the Hop Brook Protection Association and OARS for the Sudbury, Assabet and Concord Rivers have worked on the issue. Eldridge also credited Markey’s office with helping advance the effort.

The latest grant will support an inspection and analysis of potential options. Officials have not yet selected a final plan for the dam.

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