Sabin Dam

About Sabin Dam

The primary purpose of Sabin Dam is recreation. The dam creates a reservoir used for recreational activities such as fishing, boating, and swimming. The dam is owned by Grand Traverse County (local government). It impounds the Boardman River near Traverse City.

The dam stands 34 feet tall and stretches 820 feet across, creates a reservoir covering 40 acres, has a maximum storage capacity of 435 acre-feet, and collects water from a drainage area of 269 square miles. Completed in 1906, the structure is over a century old.

This dam carries a high hazard potential classification, which means that a failure or uncontrolled release of water would likely cause loss of human life. This classification reflects the consequences of failure, not the likelihood — it indicates that people live or work in the area downstream. Its condition is rated satisfactory, indicating no existing or potential dam safety deficiencies are recognized. An emergency action plan is in place for this dam. The most recent inspection on record was 08/20/2015. That was 10 years ago — unusually long for a high-hazard dam, which typically requires more frequent inspections.

At 34 feet, this dam is taller than 80% of dams nationwide.

Living Downstream

If you live or work downstream of this dam, consider taking these steps: learn your local evacuation routes, check whether your county emergency management office has a dam failure inundation map, and sign up for local emergency alerts. The Michigan dam safety program can provide more specific information about emergency planning for this structure.

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