Great Urban Parks Grant Application â Bee Branch Creek Resto
Office of the Mayor City Hall 50 West 13th Street Dubuque, IA 52001-4864 www.cityofdubuque.org
April 26, 2016 TO: National Recreation and Park Association RE: Great Urban Parks Grant Application – Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project, Dubuque IA Please accept this letter of support from the City of Dubuque for the Great Urban Parks Grant Application for the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project in Dubuque, Iowa. The Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project involves the reconstruction, resurrection and restoration of over 4,500 feet of buried creek – a project that replaces underground storm sewer with an open waterway to mitigate flood damage to 1,3730 properties and improve water quality of the Bee Branch Creek. It is in and of itself an ultimately green infrastructure project. In addition, the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project remakes three historic, culturally diverse, yet declining neighborhoods that have suffered frequent flood damage, turning them into an area that encourages small business development and housing rehabilitation. The restored creek will improve quality of life for neighborhood residents while creating a tourist attraction. The Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project has three primary goals:
Avoid future floods and related loss of property and prosperity in the area. All too often heavy rains inundate our aging storm sewers. At times, flooding has been exacerbated by the Mississippi River itself, when it is so high that water cannot flow into it.
Add value to the area. Re-creating the natural, open creek which once existed furthers economic opportunity, heritage tourism and quality of life for residents and visitors.
Implement Dubuque’s community vision for sustainability in the area. By supporting sustainable development in these neighborhoods, we connect underserved people to water through recreation facilities, environmental restoration, and education. 1
We hope you agree that the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project is a replicable model that hits all three key objectives of the Great Urban Parks Campaign: 1) Increased public access to recreational opportunities and access to nature via parks in underserved low-income communities and communities of color; 2) Improved environmental quality and increased hazard mitigation by reducing flooding, improving the site’s ability to hold and retain stormwater, improving water quality, improving wildlife habitat, and increasing biodiversity; and 3) A community engaged in improving environmental quality through green infrastructure solutions to stormwater management. Sincerely,
Roy D. Buol, Mayor
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April 26, 2016 TO: National Recreation and Park Association RE: Great Urban Parks Grant Application – Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project, Dubuque IA Please accept this letter of support from the City of Dubuque for the Great Urban Parks Grant Application for the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project in Dubuque, Iowa. The Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project involves the reconstruction, resurrection and restoration of over 4,500 feet of buried creek – a project that replaces underground storm sewer with an open waterway to mitigate flood damage to 1,3730 properties and improve water quality of the Bee Branch Creek. It is in and of itself an ultimately green infrastructure project. In addition, the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project remakes three historic, culturally diverse, yet declining neighborhoods that have suffered frequent flood damage, turning them into an area that encourages small business development and housing rehabilitation. The restored creek will improve quality of life for neighborhood residents while creating a tourist attraction. The Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project has three primary goals:
Avoid future floods and related loss of property and prosperity in the area. All too often heavy rains inundate our aging storm sewers. At times, flooding has been exacerbated by the Mississippi River itself, when it is so high that water cannot flow into it.
Add value to the area. Re-creating the natural, open creek which once existed furthers economic opportunity, heritage tourism and quality of life for residents and visitors.
Implement Dubuque’s community vision for sustainability in the area. By supporting sustainable development in these neighborhoods, we connect underserved people to water through recreation facilities, environmental restoration, and education. 1
We hope you agree that the Bee Branch Creek Restoration Project is a replicable model that hits all three key objectives of the Great Urban Parks Campaign: 1) Increased public access to recreational opportunities and access to nature via parks in underserved low-income communities and communities of color; 2) Improved environmental quality and increased hazard mitigation by reducing flooding, improving the site’s ability to hold and retain stormwater, improving water quality, improving wildlife habitat, and increasing biodiversity; and 3) A community engaged in improving environmental quality through green infrastructure solutions to stormwater management. Sincerely,
Roy D. Buol, Mayor
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