WEB SITE LAUNCHED FOR THE COLE CREEK PROJECT
January 05, 2009
January 5, 2009
WEB SITE LAUNCHED FOR THE COLE CREEK PROJECT
OMAHA – Work is under way on The Cole Creek Project, and locals can keep tabs on its progress via a new web site at www.colecreek.org.
This stormwater demonstration project is the first to follow the City of Omaha’s Urban Design Element recommendation that calls for transforming the Papio Creek waterways into a citywide public park and recreation system, said Connie Spellman, director of Omaha by Design.
Cole Creek is part of the city’s local floodplain system. It begins south of Sorensen Parkway in the northwest section of the city known as the Benson-Ames Alliance and flows into the Little Papillion Creek near the intersection of Cass and 78th streets. The project focuses on the upper portion of the creek from its headwaters south of Sorensen Parkway to Hartman Avenue. Its goals are to stabilize the creek, improve its water quality, and enhance it for recreational and educational use.
The web site is part of the project’s community outreach effort. The goal is to engage local homeowners, neighborhood associations, business associations and students in understanding their role in the local water cycle and incorporating green solutions into their daily routines, Spellman said. To find out more about the project’s community outreach activities, click on the “You” section of www.colecreek.org.
Work has already begun on excavating areas in Orchard Park where bioretention gardens – also known as rain gardens – will be planted next spring. Once the areas are excavated, a drainage system will be installed, and the depressions will be filled with engineered soils consisting of a mix of predominantly compost and sand, said Nina Cudahy, environmental quality control manager with the City of Omaha Department of Public Works. A shallow depression will remain and will be covered with erosion blankets this winter. Next spring, native grasses and perennials will be planted, and the bioretention gardens will be mulched.
The Cole Creek Project is a partnership of the City of Omaha Department of Public Works; the City of Omaha Department of Parks, Recreation and Public Property; Roncalli Catholic High School; Douglas County; Omaha by Design; the Benson-Ames Alliance; Big Muddy Workshop; Hayes Environmental L.L.C.; Lamp, Rynearson & Associates; and Olsson Associates. It is funded by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District.
For more information, contact Omaha by Design at 402.554.4010 or info@colecreek.org.