The agreement between Davis County and the state to rebuild the causeway to Antelope Island was given final approval Monday, guaranteeing $3 million in state funds for the project.
State highway engineers estimated up to $14 million to rebuild the causeway, wiped out when the Great Salt Lake began rising in 1983 and now reappearing as the lake declines.A study by the county, which wants the causeway and state park reopened to boost tourism, estimates the causeway can be rebuilt for far less than that and the state Legislature in the last session appropriated the funding.
The money will be held by the state parks department with the county drawing from the fund as the project progresses. County officials had hoped to get all of it initially so it could be invested and draw interest but the state opted to hold onto it instead.
County public works director Sid Smith said the agreement has detailed restrictions on how work on the island itself can be done to protect its environment.
The county plans to mine gravel from various locations on the island to use as fill. The topsoil from the gravel pits will be stripped and then replaced, revegetated with native grass and plants, Smith said.
Smith has said previously that the causeway can be rebuilt for around $3 million, but won't be as elaborate or massive as state transportation engineers planned. The top of the causeway won't be the 10 to 15 feet higher than the lake level advocated by the state, relying on the pumps on the lake's west side to keep the water level down.
And, depending on how the funds hold out, the causeway may or may not be paved, according to county officials.