In November 2017, construction began at Groundwork’s Lenox Drive VHRP project. It took a lot of elbow grease and patience to complete all the requirements, including permits, documentation and training. So it was exciting to get to work on the project!
Within a couple of days, the creek went from looking like this:
To a smoothly graded channel free of the degraded concrete drop structures that had been causing water to pool and create habitat for mosquitos. This is what the site looked like on November 11, 2017 when grading was almost completed:
Next, the crew planted native vegetation according to the approved Habitat Restoration and Maintenance Plan. On November 28, 2017 planting was completed, and mulch was applied to prevent erosion as the plants grew in:
On January 9, 2018 the restored creek channel had its first test – a heavy rain resulted in significant water flow in the channel, and the results were excellent! Rapid flows were slowed by the rocks preventing scour and erosion that often occur in deteriorated urban creek systems.
A few days later when flow had gone down a bit, we could see a naturally meandering channel of water gurgling down the creek. Exactly what we were looking for in a healthy stream.
For several months, the team continued to water the growing plants on the channel banks, and by the end of March 2018, plants looked healthy, and were growing well.
