After sitting dry for years, Lexington’s Old Mill Pond is set to refill with finished dam

After years of work, Lexington’s Old Mill Pond could soon live up to its name — with its deep, dry lake bed filled with water again.

The earthen dam that once filled the pond behind the Old Mill on East Main Street has finally been rebuilt, paving the way for the pond to be refilled for the first time since the old dam burst during the historic 2015 floods.

Work on the dam finished earlier in July, said owner Laban Chappell. “I’m happy to say I’ve got that off my plate,” Chappell said after eight years of work to restore the dam.

The only remaining step is for the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control to conduct a final inspection to sign off on the project’s completion. “Once we get the final sign-off, that will allow us to raise the lake back up. But we’ll keep it low until we get the thumbs up.”

For years, visitors to the adjacent Old Mill — now converted to space for shops, restaurants and pubs — have looked out from what was once the lakeside parking lot over a steep ledge to the bottom of the pond below. But soon that should change.

Crews have moved at least 30,000 to 40,000 cubic yards of dirt to complete the dam, The State previously reported. All that dirt is reinforced with a concrete sheeting anchored into the ground and the side of the mill building.

What was once a pile of dirt alongside the patio of Hazelwood Brewing is now a green hill landscaped with sod.

“The initial design thoughts were concrete and rock, but I tried to find a solution that’s a good-looking, attractive place,” Chappell said.

Now that the dam is complete, the town of Lexington can complete its own plans to build a walking trail that will encircle the dam for more than a mile. An eight-foot wide concrete trail, with one portion in asphalt, will be completed over the next nine months, said Wesley Crosby, assistant to the town administrator. Two town contracts have already been awarded for the project, he said.

“The trail will go all the way around the waterline, and there will be a few bridges to cross the water on the South Lake Drive side, as well as boardwalks,” Crosby said, including one crossing on top of the newly completed dam.

The town plans to spend $3 million on the project, including trail lighting and security cameras. The plan includes the addition of a town parking lot at the base of the dam, replacing one that was washed away with the flood.

The trail will be accessible to the public from access points at the Old Mill’s upper and lower parking lots, South Lake Drive by New Bethel AME Church, the Reserve apartments and the Parker Street Commons.

Chappell said he’s proud that through a string of delays, he was still able to keep the cost of construction under $2 million. “Between weather and COVID, it’s been almost three years” since he initially expected the project to be completed, he said.

Once the water levels are raised, the dam can begin producing hydropower again, which will partly power operations at Hazelwood Brewing, where Chappell is a co-owner, and possibly the lights on the walking trail as well.

“I’ll be able to operate it from my phone if I need to,” Chappell said.

The refilled pond and walking trail will be the latest amenities added to the town of Lexington. Last year, the town broke ground on a $7 million expansion of Virginia Hylton Park, and the year before that Lexington finished its own dam renovations to reopen Gibson Pond Park.

“It’s another improvement for citizens and visitors,” Crosby said. “I’m excited.”