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SurfaceWaterManagement <br />CurrentSituation <br />TheCityandLaneCountysharesurfacewatermanagementresponsibilitiesintheRiverRoadandSanta <br />Claracommunities,andareundertakingajointsurfacewatermasterplanforthetwoareas.Reviewed <br />materials(suchasthe2002UrbanServicesReport)donÕtidentifyanymajorsurfacewater <br />perceived <br />issuesintheneighborhoods,althoughthiscouldchangeasadditionalsubdivisionandinfilloccursand <br />olderpropertiesredevelopwithmoreimpermeablesurfaces(orwhenamajorstormeventorparticularly <br />wetwinterseasoncausessignificantfloodinganddrainageproblems).Thoseconcernsthatare <br />expressedinthe2002CommitteeReportprimarilyspeaktostormwaterquantityandlocalizedflooding <br />issuessuchas: <br />Yarddebrisremovalandillegaldumping(presumablywithrespecttotheimpactonlocalized <br />floodingfromcloggedcatchbasins) <br />Destructionandalterationofnaturaldrainagechannelsandstreams. <br />Needforbetterplanningandregulationofbuildinganddevelopmentpracticesthatimpact <br />drainage. <br />Waterqualityissuesaresimplynotmentionedinthe2002UrbanServicesReport.Furtherexaminationor <br />eventscouldrevealmoreuniversalconcerns,assurfacewatermanagementhasbecomeamajordriver <br />ofcommunityplanninginotherOregoncommunities(aswellasotherpartsofEugene). <br />Cityofficialshaveidentifiedarangeofsurfacewatermanagementissuesthatpastandpresent <br />circumstancesmaynotasyethavebeenÒbroughttotheforeÓinthemindsofcommunityresidents. <br />Theseinclude: <br />Thenumberofdrywellsinthetwocommunitiesthatmaynotcomplywithcurrentenvironmental <br />regulations <br />Lackofanapprovedbasinandsurfacewatermasterplan(s)andregulationsforthetwo <br />communities(theCityandCountyhavesuchplansandregulationsindevelopment) <br />LackofwaterqualityprotectionsandFederalCleanWaterActstandardsforlocalwaterways <br />(theseeffortsarealsounderwaybytheCityandCounty) <br />Concernsovertheabilityofruralsurfacewatersystemstohandleurbanflowsaremanyandlegitimate, <br />althoughpublicagenciesandprivateengineershaveoverthelast15yearsbeendevelopingmany <br />ÒgreenfrastructureÓsolutionstobothsurfacewaterqualityandquantityconcerns. <br />CleanWaterServices <br />(formerlytheUnifiedSewerageAgencyofWashingtonCounty)anditspartnercities,and <br />PortlandÕs <br />,havepioneeredmanyinnovativeandeffectivetechniques,someof <br />BureauofEnvironmentalServices <br />whichhavethesideÒbenefitÓofpreservingmoreÒruraltypeÓlandscapesandstreetscapes.Although <br />thesesolutionsworkbestwhenundertakeninacomprehensivemanner(e.g.:ÒridgetoptostreambedÓ <br />solutionsthatincludesitedesign,downspoutdisconnects,eco-roofs,vegetativecover,ÒgreenstreetsÓ, <br />sensitivelandspreservation,surfacepermeabilitylimitations,andmore),individualsurfacewatersystem <br />components(forinstance,bio-swales)dohavestrongattributeswhenappliedinsituationsthatbest <br />supporttheireffectiveness. <br />TransitionandHeritageOptions <br />SurfacewatermanagementappearstohavefewdistincttransitionorheritageimpactsforRiverRoadand <br />SantaClara,fortheimpactsofvariousroaddrainageoptionsonexistingstreetscapesand/orthe <br />except <br />benefitsofpreservingnatural,drainageandstreamcorridorsforbothopenspaceandsurfacewater <br />managementbenefits.Thesebenefits,especiallywhencombinedwithotherpotentialcommunity <br />strategies,suchacontextsensitivestreetdesignandopenspacepreservation,canbesignificant.These <br />RiverRoad/SantaClaraCommunityTransitionProject39 <br />TransitionandHeritageWhitePaperMay2006 <br /> <br />