public works receives 2010 green leaf
May 05, 2010
Rex Fisher, chair of the Omaha by Design Advisory Committee, presents Nina Cudahy, City of Omaha Department of Public Works, with ObD's 2010 Green Leaf award.
OMAHA – The City of Omaha Department of Public Works is the recipient of Omaha by Design’s annual Green Leaf award.
The department was recognized for its leadership role in The Cole Creek Project, a $1.6 million urban stream restoration initiative in the Benson-Ames Alliance. It’s the first project 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. The award was presented at the April 21 meeting of the Omaha by Design Advisory Committee.
The Green Leaf, presented annually by Omaha by Design, recognizes an individual, organization or business that has worked to preserve and enhance the metropolitan area’s natural setting and public park system.
Cole Creek, located in Omaha, Neb., is part of the city’s local floodplain system. It begins south of Sorensen Parkway and flows into the Little Papillion Creek near the intersection of Cass and 78th streets. The Cole Creek 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 the recreational use of Orchard Park. The community outreach component of the project is designed to engage homeowners, neighborhood associations, business associations and students in understanding their role in the local water cycle and incorporating green solutions into their daily routines.
“The Cole Creek Project brings great value to not only the Benson-Ames Alliance but to all Omaha residents because it demonstrates how multi-functional projects can enhance our community,” said Nina Cudahy, environmental quality control manager with the City of Omaha Department of Public Works.
In addition to the environmental benefits, the project’s loop trail enhances the recreational use of Orchard Park, allowing users to connect with the creek at two low-flow crossings. Cudahy said the project also serves as a collaborative model because of the multidisciplinary approach – engineering, geology, landscape architecture – employed to develop the overall project design.
The Cole Creek Project is funded by the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality and the Papio-Missouri River Natural Resources District.
For more information about Omaha by Design’s awards program, call 402.554.4010 or email info@omahabydesign.org.