REMINDER: Stream Restoration Meeting, Saturday, 3/27/10 9:30am-Noon @ Lake Anne Elementary

Hope to see a good Hickory Cluster turn out at the stream restoration meeting Saturday. Please take a moment and read HC Board president, Fred Swartzendruber's comments on what's at stake for HC. This and meeting details below. If you have concerns about how the stream restoration will effect the HC woods, duck pond and paths, this meeting is a must.

Thanks, Sara
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In our situation in Hickory Cluster (shown on the Wetlands project map as part of the Colvin Run Watershed project), the erosion is also very advanced and is now threatening a sanitary (sewer) line which runs alongside the stream. Because of the threat to the sewer line, not doing anything is really not an option, therefore the issue is how to optimize a solution which

i) preserves our natural area,
(ii) stops the erosion process, and
(iii) costs the cluster as little as possible.

RA and the Wetland Studies & Solutions people are aware of our concerns and have promised to work with us to ensure the best possible outcome which satisfies their technical requirements as well as our commitment to retaining the wooded areas in Hickory. Since the Wetlands project would also finance replacement of our bridge and repair of the paths along the stream, this is a great opportunity for us provided we can find a workable compromise on the tree removal issue. In my view, if we decline to participate in the RA/Wetlands restoration project (by not voting to approve the required environmental easement) we will forego the 100% financing of their project but will eventually be forced into a less-sophisticated repair scheme because of the sewer issue, with unknown costs to the cluster and no guarantee as to the aesthetic outcome (since many trees are now undercut and in danger of falling, and realignment of the sewer line will inevitably also require major earth moving work).

The Virginia Tech letter illustrates that this is a complex issue, but the technical approach RA and Wetlands are using is considered leading-edge in the field. The letter does not mention the mitigation bank which would finance the project, which is a unique opportunity for the cluster to tackle some long-standing issues at no cost to ourselves. A conventional utility engineering solution forced on us by Fairfax Water might be much less attractive, so I urge all of you to read the materials we have posted and come prepared when the next outreach meeting takes place.

Thanks, Fred

HC Cluster Board President
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Stream Restoration/Improvement Meeting
Colvin Run Watershed

Saturday, March 27, 2010
9:30 a.m. - Noon
Lake Anne Elementary School Cafeteria
11510 North Shore Drive, Reston, VA 20190
Lunch will be provided

You are invited to hear about Reston’s Stream Restoration Project in the Colvin Run watershed which is east of Reston Parkway and north of the Dulles Toll Road.

Wetland Studies and Solutions, Inc. will be presenting information about the history and purpose of the stream restoration project and the plans for this watershed. Time will be provided for questions and answers.

Please pass this information along to your neighbors!

For more information, contact Nicki Foremsky, RA’s Watershed
Supervisor at 703-435-6560 or Nicki@reston.org or visit the stream
restoration project website at http://reston.wetlandstudies.com or
www.reston.org.
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