May, 24, 1969
40 years ago Lopez Lake was dedicated, but the dam had already saved the south county. In past flood years nothing slowed the raging waters of the grand arroyo. Old flood photos are spectacular, water smashing through the old town of Arroyo Grande. Sometimes dunites were isolated for days until the creek went down and they could get back to Oceano.The wheels had been set in motion four years earlier on a vote of the county board of supervisors. A typhoid outbreak in Nipomo and salt water intrusion contaminating wells in Sunset Palisades and Avila Beach contributed to a sense of urgency. Despite some design glitches the project was built.It was expected to take years to fill the 22 mile lake but 1969 was the wettest on record and the lake filled and spilled in one season.Some 20,000 people came out to look around, sing, square dance and eat barbecue. The project was said to cost $16.5 million.Then San Luis Obispo city engineer David Romero and Shirley Thomas sang “The Ballad of Lopez Lake.A sample verse:
The trees came down, and tractors ran around
And the people they all scat
Blasting ‘n buzzin’ with a little bit of cussin’
And the dust sure was bad
Things waned and waxed as we argued the tax
The days of free water are gone
Our monthly bill, it is no thrill
But in 2001 it will be done
(They weren’t anticipating having to earthquake retrofit the dam at that point.)
Dorie Bentley took the photos and wrote the story. She captured an image of a “Water Cycle” an early less safe water-craft than today’s jet-ski.
Related posts:
Some of the finest riparian habitat in San Luis Obispo got buried by Lopez Lake–banana slugs, rare plants and beautiful fern grottoes.
The folks that were forced out of the idyllic canyon still miss their home. The boosterish tone of the era glosses over that as well.
When drought comes and the lake dries up, the old road can still be found at the bottom of the lake.