#TBT - Lake Middletown Project

The Great Miami Riverfront was a project proposed by Leadership Middletown in 1983. The project called for the redevelopment of a portion of the Great Miami River into a lake, to be known as Lake Middletown, as well as some redevelopment of areas along the river.

Construction of the project began on June 11, 1989 and resulted in the development of the Bicentennial Commons and the AK Steel Pavilion. Construction of the lake portion of the project was put to a halt by the Army Corps of Engineers, after the city removed a levy without proper permission, and caused silt to flow into the river. Eventually, the project garnered the nickname of Lake Mistake. Construction of the lake was not resumed. The project also called for the development of housing overlooking the river, but an attempt was never made.