SHARONVILLE, Ohio — Everywhere Ron Peake looks on his property, he seems lime dust.
"You can feel it. It coasts you," he said. "Even when there's no lime dust falling, you can feel it on your skin."
About two weeks ago, Peake said he and his neighbors noticed it looked like it was "snowing" around his property, which is located less than 100 feet from where a dredging project is underway on Sharon Lake.
"Not just dust, but actual flakes, like a snowflake," he said.
On Thursday, Aug. 1 he said he called Great Parks and the Southwest Ohio Air Quality Agency. On Friday, a representative from the agency met with him at his home.
Immediately after that, Great Parks of Hamilton County said its work to revitalize the Sharon Lake ecosystem that requires lime stopped.
In an update sent out Tuesday morning, Great Park said some work has been paused while contractors revise their plan to ensure lime dust being used for the project is not being carried by the wind to properties outside of Sharon Woods.
Contractors working on the lake, which was drained ahead of the project earlier this year, are mixing sediment with lime dust so soil is more workable for the project, according to Great Parks. Lime dust is not toxic and is often used as a soil stabilization additive, but the contractor is required to maintain dust control to ensure the lime dust doesn't carry on the wind to nearby areas.
Great Parks said after conversations with neighboring property owners and the Southwest Ohio Air Quality Agency, however, it learned that dust had traveled to properties surrounding the park.
"With this new information and out of a desire to prevent disturbance to our neighbors, guests and employees, Great Parks directed the contractor to stop mixing lime on the project until a revised work plan can be developed in partnership with SOAQA to contain airborne dust within the construction area," reads the announcement from Great Parks.
Joy Landry with the Southwest Ohio Air Quality Agency said it has received two complaints. Landry said the lime dust is non-toxic, but anyone with health concerns should see their physician.
Todd Palmeter, Great Parks CEO, said the contractor is going to submit a revised project plan and dust mitigation plan to the SOAQA.
I asked whether pausing work on lime mixing would affect the project's timeline and its originally anticipated goal of completion in mid-2025.
Palmeter said work that doesn't require lime will continue in the meantime, but impacts to the project's timeline won't be determined until after the contractor submits its revised plans.
On Wednesday afternoon, Palmeter told WCPO he was "deeply concerned about any impact this project may be having on neighbors."
Palmeter stressed that they have maintained open lines of communication with all involved parties to gather as much information as possible.
"While adding lime for soil stabilization is a common practice for projects in which large amounts of earth are moved, such as road construction, it is equally important to Great Parks that this project does not interfere with our neighbors and their property," he said.
Great Parks said they are using discussions with residents to determine the action that best minimizes disruption.
The project has been in the works since 2017 when Great Parks began its plans to renew and improve the lake; after the lake was fully drained, crews began re-positioning a buildup of sediment and silt to create a new wetland habitat. In addition, the future of the lake will include a new wetland boardwalk, fishing pier and docks.
Sharon Lake has been closed since work began earlier this year. The lake was originally estimated to re-open by the fall of 2025, Great Parks announced in April.
Once the lake is re-opened, there will be one change — motorboats will no longer be allowed on the lake.
According to Great Parks, the lake improvements address priorities in the Great Parks Comprehensive Master Plan that include a heightened access to conservation areas, along with building ecological resiliency and sustainability.
Great Parks said previously, large blooms of duckweed have been threatening recreational activities like boating, in addition to presenting a threat to wildlife habitats and access to natural areas of the lake.
In order to safely re-build the lake's ecology, crews worked to drain Sharon Lake slowly over the span of several weeks to maintain stability of the lake's banks, Great Park said.
"Great Parks will then optimize the depth of the lake by re-positioning sediment to create new wetlands in some areas and increased depth in other areas," reads the press release from Great Parks. "New wetlands will improve water filtration and expand wildlife habitat."
In addition to the lake being closed off from visitors, portions of the trail around Sharon Lake are closed during construction. However, many trails within Sharon Woods remain open, including the Gorge Trail. Visitors interested in seeing the work crews are doing on Sharon Lake are able to see it from the overlook at Sharon Woods Harbor, according to Great Parks.
In addition to re-building the lake at Sharon Woods, Great Parks also plans to improve the shared-use trail and build a new kayak launch. When the lake is completed, park officials said there will also be additional improvements made to the harbor.
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