San Vicente Dam
| San Vicente Dam | |
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San Vicente Dam in 1950
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 Location of San Vicente Dam in California
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| Location | Lakeside, San Diego County, California. |
| Coordinates | 32°54′44″N 116°55′28″W / 32.91222°N 116.92444°WCoordinates: 32°54′44″N 116°55′28″W / 32.91222°N 116.92444°W |
| Status | Operational |
| Construction began | 1941 |
| Opening date | 1943 |
| Construction cost | $2.7 Million USD |
| Owner(s) | City of San Diego |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Type of dam | Concrete gravity |
| Impounds | San Vicente Creek |
| Height | 337 ft (103 m) |
| Length | 980 ft (300 m) |
| Spillway type | Ogee, uncontrolled |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | San Vicente Reservoir |
| Total capacity | 90,000 acre·ft (110,000,000 m3) |
| Catchment area | 75 sq mi (190 km2) |
| Surface area | 1,100 acres (4.5 km2) |
The San Vicente Dam is a concrete gravity dam on San Vicente Creek near Lakeside and 25 km (15.5 mi) northeast of San Diego, California. The dam was built between 1941 and 1943 and created San Vicente Reservoir for the purpose of municipal water storage, flood control and recreation. Although the reservoir is fed by run-off, its main source is the First San Diego Aqueduct. In June 2009, construction to raise the height of the dam by 117 ft (36 m), in order to more than double its reservoir size, commenced. It is the largest dam raise in the United States and largest roller-compacted concrete dam raise in the world. The dam raise project was originally set for the end of 2012, but was completed in early 2014. Efforts to replace the water supply pipelines and prepare the reservoir for the public will be underway until 2015-2017.
In the late 19th century, San Diego began constructing dams to help supply municipal water, mitigate drought and control floods in the San Diego River Basin. In 1928, the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California was created and charged with transferring water from the Colorado River to southern California but San Diego was excluded from the project. Construction of the Colorado River Aqueduct had begun in 1933 and was completed in 1941. However, construction on the San Vicente Dam began in 1941 with anticipation of San Diego receiving water through the Colorado River Aqueduct. San Diego residents had initially rejected proposals to build the San Vicente Dam in 1939 but after the realization of the city's growing population, voters quickly approved funding for the San Vicente Dam in 1940.
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