Diamond Valley Lake Remains Open to Public as Boat Ramp Extended; Flexible Concrete Mats Will Maintain Public Access as Construction of Permanent Extension Begins This Fall.

LOS ANGELES -- Diamond Valley Lake's serene waters remained accessible to the public today as Metropolitan Water District crews continued installing concrete mats to extend a portion of the boat ramp at the lake's east marina.

Some 32 mats will temporarily extend three launch lanes 100 feet, ensuring access to the southwest Riverside County lake as storage levels are drawn down in coming weeks to meet water demands throughout Southern California. The mats will serve as a transition until the entire boat ramp is extended permanently.

Metropolitan's board of directors Tuesday awarded a $1.98 million contract to C. W. Diving Services, Inc., to permanently lengthen the marina's existing boat ramp by 225 feet. Portions of the ramp will remain open throughout construction, which is expected to begin as early as September, by the San Diego County-based company.

"Extending the permanent boat ramp almost to the bottom of the lake will nearly fulfill the Metropolitan board's ultimate vision and enhance the public's ability to use its waters," said Jill T. Wicke, MWD's manager of water system operations.

"Original plans called for the boat ramp to be 700 feet long, but we tailored installation of the first 385 feet in order to open the lake to the public as soon as possible," Wicke said.

A 160-foot-tall crane remained stationed at the east marina this morning, as MWD crews prepared the site for the installation of the temporary flexible mats. Comprised of concrete blocks linked together by steel wire, each mat measures 8 feet wide and 25 feet long and weighs about 5 tons (10,000 pounds).

During installation, which is expected to take up to three weeks, concrete mats will be lifted into place at the east end of the marina's existing boat ramp before being rolled out, linked and anchored. In its action Tuesday, Metropolitan's board also approved $350,000 for the temporary extension.

The final design of the permanent ramp extension plans for all 11 lanes to be sequentially paved with concrete as the lake level recedes. To offset the costs of concrete paving in deeper waters, Metropolitan plans to relocate the pre-cast concrete panels, which currently finish off the existing ramp, to extend the ramp another 120 feet. Construction of the permanent extension is expected to take up to eight months.

"Although Diamond Valley Lake's deep waters provide for some of the best freshwater fishing in the West, the bottom line is that it provides essential storage for drinking water for most of the Southland," Wicke said. "When supplies are needed, particularly during warm summer months, the public should expect lake levels to be drawn down to meet demands."

For more information about fishing and other recreational amenities at Diamond Valley Lake, visit "dvlake.com."

The Metropolitan Water District of Southern California is a cooperative of 26 cities and water agencies serving 18 million people in six counties. The district imports water from the Colorado River and Northern California to supplement local supplies, and helps its members to develop increased water conservation, recycling, storage and other resource-management programs.