In dire straits: Two dams need fix -- yesterday

Someday, a brand-new kind of Hamilton Dam could cross the Flint River, one that lets spawning walleye journey upstream and kayakers shoot down artificial rapids through the University of Michigan-Flint campus.

Or it might be a historic re-creation of Flint's colorful Carriage Town-era past, with scrolled stone arches and wrought iron streetlights.

Or a majestic, two-story walkway where people can stroll from the river's south bank to the north, gazing down at the water below.