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Long Term Plans For Five Creeks In Boulder County

Kerry Grimes
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used with permission

It's been almost a year and a half since Boulder County was deluged by rain, causing creeks to swell, and, in some cases, create new channels. Now the county is focusing on long term stabilization of those waterways.

The master planencompasses five local creeks that were heavily affected by the 2013 floods: Fourmile, Left Hand, St. Vrain, Little Thompson, and Upper Coal.

Credit Boulder County / Comprehensive Creek Planning Initiative
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Comprehensive Creek Planning Initiative
An example from the St. Vrain plan of some of the conceptual designs of bank protection.

The plan outlines what still needs to be done to stabilize those creeks, everything from planting vegetation to returning parts of the creek to their original channels. 

Interview Highlights With Julie McKay

On Projects Included

“Particularly at the bottoms of the canyon, there was a lot of sediment deposition, areas that look like beaches. The channel may need redesign in order to return it’s form but also the vegetation is very important. That serves a flood control function as well as an ecological function too.  

On Funding The Projects

“They [the projects] are largely unfunded. One of the main reasons to develop these plans, is that it gives everybody a tool to pursue funding from whatever source is available.”

On Residents’ Feedback

“There still is a concern [by residents] about what do I need to do to restore and protect my property and also to feel safe in the future, and hopefully these plans will provide a roadmap for residents for agencies and for whoever else is using them to have a sense of how to go forward in addressing those needs.”

Boulder County commissioners will be presented with a master plan on Monday, January 12.

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