Worries over tourism with Lake Ontario at near record levels

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Lake Ontario levels are projected to stay high through 2019, regardless of rainfall, raising concerns about summer tourism along New York’s lakeshore.

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers data puts the lake at nearly 34 inches above the June average as of Monday. That’s one inch below the record set June 14.

Sackets Harbor Mayor Molly Reilly tells the Syracuse Post-Standard some merchants are reporting low sales compared to this time last year. She recalled low sales two years ago when high waters made it difficult for boaters to reach the docks.

A spokesman for the International Lake Ontario-St. Lawrence River Board says heavy rains and high levels at the other Great Lakes are cancelling out the water being released from the Moses-Saunders Power Dam downstream from Lake Ontario.