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Fec~era~ Priorities 2007 <br />Natura~ Resources <br />Delta Ponds and Springfield MiII Race <br />Request <br />The .Cities of Eugene and Springfield .request that Congressionally authorized and <br />appropriated funds be programmed for FY 2007 and 2008 construction. <br />- .Background <br />These Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), Section 206, environmental restoration. <br />projects have been previously authorized and funds have been appropriated by previous <br />Congressional actions. All agreements are in place between the City of Eugene, the local <br />sponsor, and the Corps of Engineers for the Delta Ponds project, and between the City of <br />Springfield and the Corps of Engineers for the Springfield Mill Race project. <br />' Springfield Milt Race. The failure of the Corps of Engineers to program Congressionally <br />'; mandated funds for this project has stymied design and construction of Mill Race restoration.: <br />The project, under Section 206 of the WRDA, requires the U.S. Army_Corps of Engineers <br />(Corps) to move the existing inlet to the Mill Race about 1,800 feet upstream and connect it <br />to the. Mill Race through a channel that goes through Clearwater Park, which is operated by <br />the Willamalane Park and Recreation District. The project will also remove the existing <br />Millpond dam and replace the Millpond with a more rapidly flowing. channel, three seasonal <br />ponds which create additional habitat, and a fourth pond for fire suppression and process. <br />use by one of Springfield's largest employers. <br />At the site of the seasonal ponds, a small educational and recreational facility-consisting of <br />a trailhead, a short trail loop, and informational and interpretive material-will be <br />constructed. This will help. integrate the. Millpond site .into the plans. for revitalization of <br />downtown. Subsequent phases will address downstream issues. <br />The Corps has .issued a Finding of No Significant Impact,. and the City and Corps have <br />' signed a Project Cooperation Agreement to fix the roles and responsibilities of those involved <br />in the project. According to the Corps, this places the project in the category of "under <br />construction," which is the first priority for use of available funding in` the Continuing <br />` ~ Authorities Program. In addition, Willamalane Park and Recreation District has secured a <br />$100,000 Recreation Trails .Grant to fund the local portion of educational and recreational <br />components of the project to be located at the Millpond site. The Corps began design, and <br />- construction was expected to begin in July 2004. <br />.Unfortunately, construction did not begin in 2004 and may, in fact,. not begin in 2007, unless. <br />the current confusion about priorities for applying funds to ,pre-existing earmarks can be <br />resolved. The issue, it appears, revolves around the national level of Corps spending on <br />projects funded under Section 206. Although the appropriation for Section .206 projects in <br />federal fiscal year 2006 was increased to $35 million and only $26 million was earmarked, <br />:`' the Corps has been unwilling either to commit some portion of the non-earmarked funds or <br />commit that prior earmarks will be honored before current-ones. <br />The failure to initiate construction on this project has several adverse consequences. First, it <br />places the grant received by Willamalane at risk since the terms of that grant require project <br />40 <br />