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The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is finishing up the final draft of the feasibility report for the Delta Ponds Restoration project, and the report will go out for review at the Corps' regional level next week. ne project will involve installing large culverts at the upstream end of the pond system and under Delta Highway to allow Willamette River water to flow more freely into the ponds. The culverts at the Willamette River will be gated to maintain flood control in the pond system. A new 30-foot-wide vegetated bench and shallower banks will replace the existing steep banks along Delta Highway and Goodpasture Island Road. Lane County has agreed to participate in the project and will allow the filling and planting work along Delta Highway. In addition to the culverts and the fill and riparian planting along Delta Highway and Goodpasture Island Road, the project will also include fill removal to reopen an historic side channel on the west bank of the river just downstream from the Delta Ponds. Staff is also investigating the possibility of building bike passages under Goodpasture Island Road and Delta Highway to connect the neighborhoods east of Delta Highway to the bike path system. The City and Corps staff have also worked out the recreation components of the project, which will include gravel paths, a footbridge, parking areas, interpretive signs, benches and viewing areas. The feasibility report should be approved at the regional level by the middle of October, at which time staff will start to work out the details of the Project Cooperation Agreement (PCA) between the Corps and the City. The project schedule calls for the PCA to be signed by January 1, 2003, and final design work to begin immediately after the signing. The major earthwork and initial planting work are scheduled for the 2003 summer construction season. Removal of invasive plants, replanting, and monitoring will likely continue through 2008. The current cost estimate for the project is$6.2 million, with about $782,000 of the total going toward the recreation improvements. The Army Corps will match the City's funds at a rate of 65:35 for the restoration work and 50:50 for the recreation work. The Corps' participation in the recreation portion of the project is capped at 10% of its share of the restoration work. In June, staff submitted a grant request to the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board to help fund the project. OWEB declined the City's request for funds during this round but the agency is supportive of the project and has ncouraged the City to reapply for grant funds after the design details of the project have been worked out. For more .• information, contact Kevin Finney, Project Manager, at 682-6018. City Acquires 75 Acres of Wetlands in West Eugene On August 30, the City of Eugene acquired 75 additional acres of wetlands in the floodplain of Amazon Creek in west Eugene. The land is located north of Royal Avenue and east of Greenhill Road, between the Amazon Diversion Channel and the Amazon A-Channel, and augments more than 400 acres of wetlands south of Royal Avenue that are currently being restored. This large, contiguous span of prairie wetlands provides habitat for numerous plants and animals that depend on large expanses of prairie wetlands for their long-term survival, such as Oregon's state bird,the western meadowlark. The Fern Ridge Multi-Use Path, which is currently being constructed south of Royal Avenue, travels near the new wetlands, providing public access to the wetlands. Interpretive signs along the path will explain many of the important ecological and cultural facets of the wetlands. The wetlands were purchased with a combination of funds, including a $500,000 grant from the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board (OWEB), $530,000 from a North American Wetlands Conservation Act grant, $680,000 from the Eugene District Bureau of Land Management, and $250,000 from the City of Eugene's Stormwater Management fund, for a total purchase price of$1.96 million. This acquisition was made possible and will be managed by the West Eugene Wetlands Partnership, which includes the City of Eugene, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Oregon Youth Conservation Corps. The area may be restored in the future through the ietland mitigation bank or other funding sources. For more information, please call Parks and Open Space Wetlands EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 September 6,2002 ccnews090502.wpd