Beardstown, IL – House and Senate passage of a federal bill will guarantee Beardstown's access to the Illinois River.
Mayor Bob Walters says while President Bush does not like some provisions of the Water Resources Development Act, it did pass the House with a veto-proof majority.
Walters says he'll meet next week with members of the local Marina Committee to discuss what would be the best way to keep the town's marina connected to the river. After that, he'll begin negotiations with the Corps of Engineers.
He says problems began more than 50 years ago when the Corps shifted the mouth of the Sangamon River several miles downstream closer to Beardstown.
Walters says that has caused the river to silt in the nearby Muscooten Bay, the passage leading from the Illinois River channel to he marina, and the water alongside the town's flood wall.
He believes the best solution would be to allow the Sangamon River to return to its previous course.
Walters says this would mean the Sangamon River would drop its silt in the Illinois River channel well above Beardstown. This would end the silting-in of the marina and allow it to re-connect to the river.
He says this would mean the Corps would still have to dredge regularly on the Illinois River barge channel. However, he says it would help keep Beardstown from being silted in again.
He says there are some other possibilities that will be discussed in the Marina Committee meetings and then taken up with the Corps.
Walters says he has been working for years trying to get the Corps of Engineers to change the way it regulates the Illinois River near his town. He believes when the new Act is signed, access will be assured.