The City of Oakland removed the dam, culverts and 12-lane "mini-freeway" at 12th Street, widening the tidal channel connecting Lake Merritt to the Oakland Estuary and San Francisco Bay. The channel is now a 100-foot-wide, free flowing tidal channel that enhances the Lake's water quality. The channel widening was discussed in these articles in the San Jose Mercury News, San Francisco Chronicle and CBS news.