The Lake Christine Dam stabilization project that has reduced Two Rivers Road to a single lane for much of the summer will be continuing for “a week or two” longer than was initially projected in March, according to a Colorado Parks and Wildlife engineer familiar with the project. 

Eric Eisinger, dam safety program manager at CPW, said subsurface conditions at Lake Christine were different from what was initially planned for, causing minor delays. Eisinger added that delays caused by unforeseen subsurface conditions are not uncommon, as projections are based on what they believe the rock and soil makeup to be, which are never 100% certain.

The Lake Christine Reservoir was originally a water storage and recreational site for Basalt. A 2015 landslide caused by reservoir bedrock water seepage cast doubt on the stability of the surrounding mountain slope, ultimately leading to a significant reduction in water storage capacity and an end to recreation on the reservoir. 

This summer’s stabilization project aimed to restore needed stabilization to the dam, with the aim of bringing it back to the reservoir’s full water storage capacity and stocking fish again as early as spring 2026. 

It was projected to finish by the middle of August, in hopes that there would be little to no disruption of school commuting. 

Now, the town is planning on making traffic adjustments to the single lane on Two Rivers Road to ensure that traffic does not become a major issue for Basalt parents looking to drop their kids off or pick them up from school, as Basalt schools return to class this week. 

“We have adjusted the (traffic light), so it’s longer green coming into town in the morning with school traffic, and reverse as the day ends — it’ll be longer green going out,” said Doug Pattison, Basalt interim town manager. “We can adjust that to see if that’s got to be an amicable solution, but we’re monitoring that as well.”

Additionally, Pattison has been told that Two Rivers Road should be clear of construction before the end of the month, even though work on the project could extend into September. 

“They’re projecting that the work will continue, but they’re expecting that the roadway will be clear by the end of August,” he said. “This is really the bedrock strength issue for the dam.”