The Corps of Engineers at Center Hill Lake has said there are no plans for a marina to be built at the Dublin Access Area.
Dekalb County Commissioners brought the idea to the table. However, residents voiced opposition to the idea last week. Center Hill Lake Natural Program Resources Manager Kevin Salvilla said he believes most residents want to see Center Hill remain as it is today.
“There’s been no decision made on Dublin Access,” Salvilla said. “There is no Marina that is going forward without going through the federal process, and that’s gonna have to start with a formal conversation.”
Salvilla said as communities around Center Hill continue to grow, it would be negligent of the Corps of Engineers not to have discussions about the future of Center Hill and how those resources are managed.
“I mean, growth is happening in our communities,” Salvilla said. “You don’t have to look around and see the increase in residential communities growing around us. Access to our lakes are becoming more and more popular, and you know our facilities are currently at their breaking point. The parking is inadequate. We don’t have enough good access points to the lake. So anytime that we can consider improving those, the public is gonna be involved in that discussion.”
The Dekalb County Commission proposed a resolution to continue a conversation with the Corps of Engineers about leasing the property for a marina and then receiving a share of the gross revenue from the marina.
Salvilla said there are several hurdles to jump over for a marina to be built at Center Hill Lake. Salvilla said the Corps of Engineers would have to determine that the area being considered meets the classification for high-density recreation or low-density recreation. Secondly, Salvilla said the Corps of Engineers has to follow federal law for anything that they do under the National Environmental Protection Act.
“That is essentially, when we make a proposal or someone submits a proposal, we have to consider several different factors and public input as well,” Salvilla said. “But also access, road conditions, infrastructure, can it accommodate those things? safety, but there has to be a feasibility study, and there has to be a market analysis. There are so many things that have to even occur before any of those discussions can go forward.”
Salvilla said there has been a lot of confusion and misunderstanding in the community regarding the marina idea. Salvilla said the Corps of Engineers is considering having a public meeting to further clear up the confusion.
