Supervisors hear progress update on Long Creek Dam

Published 3:48 pm Monday, February 2, 2026

Lauderdale County supervisors on Monday learned more about the current status of a project to repair Long Creek Dam as Waggoner Engineering’s Bill McDonald spoke at a Board of Supervisors Meeting.

McDonald said the dam repair project has been funded by the National Resource Conservation Service. The federal agency was given a boost in funding in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Act, which was passed by Congress in 2021, which in turn gave states more funding to allocate as well. Approximately $3 million has been allocated for the Long Creek Dam repairs, which will include planning, design and construction.

Supervisors previously requested NRCS assistance in December 2023, McDonald said, which started the clock on the project. At the time, he said he estimated construction would begin in Summer 2026, but several obstacles have delayed progress.

A review of federal spending implemented by the Department of Government Efficiency, an initiative to cut waste led by Elon Musk in 2025, put the project on hold for roughly 60 days, McDonald said, and a government shutdown from Oct.1 to Nov. 12, 2025, also hindered progress. The two events resulted in fewer resources and fewer people to handle the workload, further slowing the process.

“The state and the feds are both tremendously reduced in their staffing a resources,” he said.

Plans for the Long Creek Dam repair are currently under review by the NRCS. McDonald said Waggoner will respond to any comments the agency has about the plan before it opens up for a 30-day public comment period. If no issues are raised, the design portion of the project can begin after that.

The project update comes as supervisors are discussing the need to move dam repairs forward. In a work session Thursday, county officials talked about pivoting away from federal funding to get work underway faster.

Supervisor Kyle Rutledge said he thinks it will be helpful for Waggoner to come to the next city/county efficiency meeting to update both Meridian and Lauderdale County officials on the status of the project. While the county is involved in the work, the dam itself belongs to the city of Meridian, and any action will need to be taken in cooperation with city leaders, he said.

“Everyone wants to get this done,” he said.