I have worked at the local and the state and the federal levels of government, and I understand how difficult it is to put together big infrastructure projects like this and get them over the line, so you all should be incredibly proud of this accomplishment.”

U.S. Senator Tina Smith

The ribbon cutting held at Lake Byllesby Dam on Thursday, Oct. 3 showcased the cooperation between county, state and federal funds for largescale infrastructure projects like the one that took place at the Lake Byllesby Dam over the past few years. The $47 million project to upgrade the turbines, generator, powerhouse and control room of the dam was funded via $26 million from the American Rescue Plan, the $1.9 trillion package signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, $12 million from state bonds, and $9 million from non-levy county funds.
“This project could not have been done by Dakota County alone,” said Commissioner Mike Slavik.
To that point U.S. Senator Tina Smith attended the ribbon cutting and toured the newly renovated facility. “I have worked at the local and the state and the federal levels of government, and I understand how difficult it is to put together big infrastructure projects like this and get them over the line, so you all should be incredibly proud of this accomplishment.”
Sen. Smith referenced the bipartisan work of Minnesota politicians like Sen. Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Angie Craig, Rep, Pam Altendorf as well as from President Biden and Vice President Harris in order for the project to be completed.
“This is one of our priorities and it’s great to see us being proactive and making sure that this is clean energy into the future,” said Altendorf at the event.
From inside the dam, Dakota County Commissioners, Smith and attendees viewed the two new generators built in India and brought all the way to Lake Byllesby, before ascending to cross the catwalk over the dam itself.
Over the roar of 250 cubic feet per second (CFS) of water over the dam, workers shepherded visitors across the catwalk and discussed raising and lowering water levels with the seasons to adjust for high water tables for local farmers. Far below, the shapes of carp could be seen vainly attempting to cross up and over the dam.
In 1910 when Lake Byllesby Dam was constructed by Henry M. Byllesby, it was the largest dam in the United States. Some 500-600 workers completed the project in nine months using mainly hand tools. The dam was operated by Northern States Power until 1969 when it was sold to Dakota and Goodhue counties. Dakota County took full control of the dam in 2009 when Goodhue sold it for $1.
The shadow of the partial-failure of Rapidan Dam lingered over the discussion and tour of Lake Byllesby Dam. While the water is currently low, during the flooding throughout the summer, water levels reached 19,000 CFS at Lake Byllesby Dam, about 76 times the flow the day of the ribbon cutting. Much of that water passed through Lake Byllesby Dam’s spillway which can handle up to 35,000 CFS. 35,000 CFS is the same amount of water that peaked at Rapidan Dam in June that caused the partial failure of the dam.
The renovations to the Lake Byllesby Dam is a continuance of much of the conservational work already undertaken by Dakota County. The upgrades to the dam will generate twice the amount of electricity as it did before, some 4.4 megawatts. 4.4 megawatts of electricity, or 4,400,000 watts is roughly twice the amount of electricity needed to power the city of Cannon Falls.
Electricity generated from Lake Byllesby is expected to be transferred to power grids and sold on the open market to utility providers. According to Commissioner Joe Atkins, future revenue from the dam is “eventually going to contribute to hold down our property taxes.”
The upgrades to Lake Byllesby Dam also mark another milestone for Dakota County. “What today is all about is that this is the first place in America, the first county in America, that will generate more electricity from renewable sources than all of our buildings and facilities,” said Atkins.
This record is built upon much of the conservation work already undertaken especially at the Dakota County government building in Hastings including the installation of solar panels from the energy efficiency project beginning in late 2023.