Lake Conway renovation public meeting postponed

MAYFLOWER — The Arkansas Game and Fish Commission has postponed the public meeting, originally scheduled for Jan. 27, about the Lake Conway renovation due to hazardous road conditions after the weekend’s winter storm.

The call to reschedule the meeting came Sunday night after many local school districts proactively closed their schools through Jan. 27.

Nick Feltz, Fisheries supervisor at the AGFC regional office in Mayflower, who is overseeing the renovation, said the call to postpone the meeting is an effort to ensure anyone interested in the progress of the lake renovation has an opportunity to attend and talk one-on-one with biologists and other AGFC staff.

Feltz says the new time and date for the meeting will be announced as soon as the location can be secured.

Lake Conway has nearly reached the halfway point of its scheduled five-year renovation project that includes replacement of the lake’s outdated dam and water-control structure. In addition to critical enhancements to infrastructure, AGFC staff are working to improve valuable aquatic habitat on the aging lake. Gravel beds have been added throughout the lake to improve spawning habitat, and various forms of complex artificial cover have been placed in key areas of the lakebed during the drawdown.

Feltz and the Lake Conway renovation were recently featured on the Arkansas Wildlife Podcast, and people wishing to attend the meeting are encouraged to view that video at the AGFC’s YouTube channel to learn some of the details about the project. Feltz hopes to focus the effort of the coming meeting on a brief overview of these details and a more comprehensive dive into plans for the next year to work with local landowners to remove and update lakeside structures and improve aquatic habitat throughout the lake.

Visit www.agfc.com/lakeconway for a timeline of the project, including each component of the renovation to date.

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