First phase of University Lakes restoration project nearly complete, public has mixed feelings about construction

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — A multi-year project to repair lakes in the Baton Rouge metro area is drawing mixed reactions from the public.

“This is arguably the greatest quality of life asset we have in the Capital Region,” said Mark Goodson, director of the University Lakes Restoration Project.

The University Lakes Restoration Project has been underway since 2022 to make six lakes in the region healthy again.

“The lakes need it. I mean, they're, they're in really bad shape. The average depth of the lakes before we started was two and a half feet,” Goodson said.

Dredging, which involves removing material from the bottom of the lake, is part of the first phase and Goodson says it is almost complete.

“A lot of the material that grew on the lake bottom came from the drought when the lake bottom was exposed last summer,” Goodson said.

Goodson says some of the material extracted from the water will be used to create new shorelines for people to enjoy and to reduce the risk of flooding.

“These shorelines will be landscaped with native materials that will help slow and filter runoff before it enters the lakes to improve water and habitat quality,” Goodson said.

Many people use Milford Wampold Memorial Park for walking, jogging, and biking. This is an area where teams work. Local residents say they are ready to complete this work.

“It’s encouraging and it’s nice to see that they’re doing all these things,” said park visitor Madeline Gagneaux.

As work resumes around LSU Lakes, a popular spot for students and the Baton Rouge community, it's causing more congestion in neighborhoods. Some say it has become a disadvantage. Local residents say they are ready to complete this work.

“I hope that once the process is complete, everything will go well. But right now, it’s not a pleasant sight to walk around,” said park visitor Larry Jackson.

Goodson says it's temporary and for the best.

“We appreciate everyone’s patience. We understand that it’s not always practical with all the construction,” Goodson said.

The first phase, dredging of Lake Erie and City Lake Park, is expected to be completed by July.

In the meantime, Goodson says people can also expect to see improvements on May Street.

“Create a new canal under May Street to connect, better connect the two largest lakes,” Goodson said.

Goodson says $70 million is allocated for phases one and two. Part of the funding comes from the City of Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, BREC and Louisiana State University.

Latest news