The Buckeye Lake dam project is now scheduled for completion a year ahead of schedule, Ohio Department of Natural Resources director James Zehringer said Tuesday.

The department's new construction timeline anticipates that the estimated $110 million project will be finished in the fall of 2018, Zehringer said. The earlier completion means the summer of 2019 will see Buckeye Lake restored to its normal 6-foot summer depth and boating traffic — and the business it brings to the region's bars and restaurants — return to pre-crisis levels.

"Not only are we projected to finish well ahead of time, we are on budget," Zehringer said.

In the meantime, the water will be kept this summer at 1 foot below the normal summer depth. Workers were scheduled this morning to lower "stop logs" in place to close the spillway gates to allow the lake to start refilling with rainfall. After two years of shallow water pending construction of the new dam, business owners are hoping for a more normal summer depth that allows most boating to resume at the lake, about 25 miles from Columbus.

"I'm very excited that the stop logs are going to be put back in place," said Dave Levacy, who owns Buckeye Lake Marina and also is a Fairfield County commissioner. "We're going to allow the water to rise, God willing, assuming we get enough rainfall, to allow for boating."

Buckeye Lake Brewery plans to celebrate with a "Shut the Spillway and Make it Rain" party scheduled for 4 p.m. today. Patrons are encouraged to wear slickers and other rain gear, drink the specialty "Rainwater" cocktail and listen to rain- and storm-themed songs.

The new dam will replace the nearly 200-year-old earthen dam, which the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers found was at significant risk of failure.

The project is being done in phases. The first — a seepage barrier to protect the dam — was completed last year ahead of schedule, thanks to a virtually round-the-clock construction pace. The second phase — construction of the new dam — begins in April, Zehringer said.

A rendering shows what the 4.1-mile dam will look like. The design provides space for each household along the dam to have a boat dock. The top of the dam will be clad in a concrete cap and topped with both grass and a paved path.

The path will provide both access for dam-safety inspectors and recreation for walkers, joggers and bicyclists. "We're hoping that people will take advantage of that recreational opportunity," Zehringer said.

Department officials initially had said that the project wouldn't be finished until 2020, and then revised that to 2019. The early completion of the first phase and expedited permit approvals from the Army Corps of Engineers allowed the completion date to be moved to fall 2018.

"Hopefully, the community will take advantage of the investment we've made out there," Zehringer said. "We know some people have been inconvenienced, but we hope there's an end in sight."

The public can attend two open houses about the dam project that the Ohio Department of Natural Resources has scheduled: On March 8 at Lakewood High School at 9331 Lancer Road SE in Hebron, and on March 9 at Millersport Elementary School at 11850 Lancaster Street in Millersport, both from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.