RIVERS -- A new visitor center at Wanapum Dam on the Columbia River near Vantage will be open starting Tuesday.
The Grant Public Utilities District says it has prepared new displays to highlight how the dam balances hydropower, fish passage, recreation and natural resource management.
The center, situated about seven miles south of the Vantage Bridge at Interstate 90, is a 2,000-square-foot facility featuring interactive exhibits and a theater with videos showing how the Columbia Basin was formed and how the Wanapum Dam works.
The center will be open to the public after a 10 a.m. ribbon-cutting ceremony Tuesday.
There's no word on whether the exhibits will mention the crack discovered in the spillway in February 2014 required drawdowns, boat launch closures and other restrictions while repairs were made. The reservoir was refilled starting in March 2015. Efforts were made to minimize the impact the drawdown and repairs had on the huge salmon runs in the river during that season.
