HomeMy WebLinkAbout35th St wetland_EAC to VPA park board_Oct 2020_finalLittle oasis in the middle of a neighborhood on the east side of town
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Timeline of key events
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Relevant background:
▪Oct 2017 – resolutions 0007-2017 and 0008-2017, confirming and appropriating
funds for the MYSB parks plan were approved VPA Board of Park Commissioners.
Plan includes, acquisition and development of new parklands, with the goal to
“improve access in areas of the city where park services are lacking.”
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Relevant background:
▪Oct 2017 - City resident Andrew Tucker contacts VPA Director Aaron Perri
regarding opportunity to develop a park at 35th Street. Mr. Perri visits the site.
▪Figure 1. Satellite image of the “35th St Wetlands” site (approx. 5 acres). The site
is bounded by 35th St to the west, Washington St to the north, Logan St to the
east, and Marshall Ave to the south. Nearby “neighborhoods” include, Park
Jefferson, River Park, Jefferson Acres, Bercliff, and McKinley Terrace.
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Relevant background:
▪Nov 2017 - Danielle Campbell, Assistant City Attorney, confirms the 35
th Street
site is owned by the city and zoned as SF1 (Single Family and w/o Family District),
allows for public (active or passive) parks
▪Figure 2.Parcel map for the area surrounding the 35th Street wetlands area, with
US Fish and Wildlife Service wetland boundaries delineated (approximate).
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Relevant background:
▪Dec 2017 – Mr. Tucker invited to present to the VPA Board of Park
Commissioners. He outlined opportunities for a park at 35th Street and
demographics of the area served based on the Trust for Public Lands (TPL)
planning tools.
▪The presentation highlighted the TPL’s 10-minute walk campaign, which
commits cities to ensuring that every resident has “safe, easy access to a
quality park within a 10-minute (1/2 mile) walk of home by 2050”
(https://10minutewalk.org/). Of note, Mayor Pete Buttegieg committed
to joining the TPL 10-minute Walk Campaign in his “State of the City”
remarks, March 2018.
▪At present, only 64% of South Bend residents live within a 10-minute walk
of a city park (https://www.tpl.org/city/south-bend-indiana). Access to
parks is especially lacking in a few key areas, including the 35th Street site,
which is one of the areas classified as “very high need.”
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▪Fig 3. Trust for Public Lands ParkServe Map showing optimized points,
numbered 1 through 5 for new parks (based on estimated increase in
residents served within a 10-minute walk of the park). 35th St wetland is in
the area designated as the #3 highest need area for new parks. Park “need”
is based on the ParkServe Methodology, which assigns level of need based
on a weighted calculation of three demographic variables: population
density, density of children, and density of low-income households. Areas
in red are designated as “very high” need.
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Relevant background:
▪TPL ParkServe project area report indicates that a park at the 35th Street
site would serve approximately 3300 individuals and nearly 1400
households. This is on par with some of the larger parks in the VPA
system (Figure 4).
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Relevant background:
▪Dec 2017 presentation highlighted some of the native plants/wildlife. And
painted picture of opportunity for a healthy natural area and a place to
explore, play, relax, learn, connect
▪The site currently functions as a storm water catch basin and is seasonally
flooded. An approximately ¾ acre persistent wetland is present and
supports a diverse community of wetland plants, including a handful of
state of Indiana rare and threatened species. The wetland is surrounded
by successional shrubs and mature trees on the upland margins. An area
approximately ¼ acre in size on the south side of the property is regularly
mowed by a City department. An electrical utility easement runs north-
south along the east side of the property. The north and west sites of the
property are heavily wooded. There are no defined parking areas or
pathways.
Images (from top left to lower right)
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Common pickerelweed
Carex atherodes (hairy leaved lake sedge)- state endangered, no records in ST Joe Co
Carex conjuncta (green headed fox sedge)- abundant at this site, but no other records of this
plant in St Joe Co
Salix sericea (silky willow) usually found in bogs
Juncus effusus (lamp rush)
Elderberry
Common blue violet (NP)
Raspberry (NP)
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Relevant background:
▪Figure 5. “Risk register” prepared by Patrick Sherman, VPA Project Manager, May 2018,
for a “Proposed New City Park at 35th Street Wetland”
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Relevant background:
▪Figure 6. Preliminary drawing prepared by Patrick Sherman, VPA Project Manager, May
2018, for a “Proposed New City Park at 35th Street Wetland”
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Relevant background:
▪ EAC discussed VPA draft plants. VPA/EAC site visit July 2018 ; creation of EAC 35
th Street
Wetlands subcommittee to consider opportunities for park planning and wetlands
protection/restoration at 35th Street
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Relevant background:
University of Notre Dame students participate in a beautification project at 35th St
Wetlands as part of the annual Back the Bend event, with assistance from VPA
Volunteer Coordinator Amy Roush on recommendation from Andrew Tucker and
Patrick Sherman.
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Relevant background:
University of Notre Dame students participate in a beautification project at 35th St
Wetlands as part of the annual Back the Bend event, with assistance from VPA
Volunteer Coordinator Amy Roush.
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Relevant background:
Sign installed by ND Students as part of Back the Bend project to prevent
unauthorized ATV use in the wetland, which had been damaging native plants and
aiding spread of invasive plants.
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Relevant background:
Modeled after a successful partnership for park planning at Pinhook between VPA
and Rose-Hulman Inst of Technology University, EAC/Patrick Sherman reached out
to Eric Horvath, Director City of South Bend Public Works and adjunct faculty
University of Notre Dame regarding opportunities for project-centered learning
opportunity for UND students. Notre Dame Senior Engineering Students
subsequently develop draft designs and site plans as part of a senior capstone
course co-taught by Mr. Horvath. Alicia Pellegrino (nee Czarnecki), South Bend City
Engineer and EAC member, serves as project client and develops a project charter
for the students, Sept 2019.
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Relevant background:
University of Notre Dame Senior Engineering Students share final designs and site
plans.
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Relevant background:
University of Notre Dame Senior Engineering Students share final designs and site
plans. Including boardwalk, pathway, play area design elements…
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Relevant background:
University of Notre Dame Senior Engineering Students share final designs and site
plans. Including boardwalk, pathway, play area design elements…
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Relevant background:
ND student plans also include ecological restoration, environmental education, and
stormwater management design elements.
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Relevant background:
ND student plans also include ecological restoration, environmental education, and
stormwater management design elements.
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Relevant background:
ND student plans also include ecological restoration, environmental education, and
stormwater management design elements.
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Relevant background:
Overview of University of Notre Dame Senior Engineering student design plans.
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Relevant background:
EAC reviews Notre Dame student plans. At September 2020 meeting, the EAC votes
to prepare a letter to VPA Board of Park Commissioners outlining rationale for a
park at 35th Street site and recommendations for park planning and
implementation (letter submitted Oct 2020).
Rationale includes:
▪Balancing recreation and environment
▪The area identified lacks park access and the 35th Street site provides
opportunities for active and passive recreation (e.g. playgrounds and
nature observation)
▪Increased public awareness and outreach (for nature)
▪Nature park focus is consistent with recent efforts to highlight natural
communities and biodiversity in South Bend (e.g. Howard Park bioswale,
Pinhook native tree walk, Leeper Park river overlook)
▪ Environmental education
▪comparatively young demographic of the area that would be
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served by a park at 35th Street and proximity to a number of local
primary schools (including McKinley, Nuner, St Anthony de Padua)
suggests significant opportunities for environmental education and
outreach to promote “an ethic of environmental stewardship” in
the city of South Bend
▪Wetland protection/restoration –
▪Historically, very few wetlands in this part of town, so 35th Street serves as
refuge for local wetland plants/animals
▪Wetland protection/restoration especially important, considering that
nearly 90% of all wetlands in the state of Indiana have been lost.
▪Properties that contain wetlands are designated “Sensitive
Areas/Properties” in the VPA NRMP.
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Relevant background:
▪Invasive plant mitigation and restoration of the native plant community
▪hire an environmental consultant to develop an invasive species
management (esp. Reed Canary Grass) and native species restoration
plan for the 35th Street Wetlands
▪Volunteer-based invasive species removal efforts will be successful for
some species (e.g. garlic mustard) and should be coordinated with VPA
and community member leadership.
▪ Stormwater management
▪ Short term -1) installing trash screens on stormwater outfalls, and 2)
managing erosion around stormwater outfalls
▪Long term -map and develop a green infrastructure plan for the
drainage basin that will reduce stormwater inputs to the 35
th Street site
▪ Trash mitigation
▪A solid-waste management strategy should be developed for the site
▪ Nuisance wildlife mitigation
▪A program for feral cat population control should be developed for the
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site
▪ Environmental Education opportunities
▪VPA should strive to create a “nature park” experience at the 35th Street
Wetlands that will inspire an ethic of environmental stewardship among
local citizens.
▪ Ecologically neutral site design
▪Park design and siting of all park amenities should ensure that the natural
features and ecological function of the property are retained or improved
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EAC will continue to offer support to planning and implementation efforts.
Questions can be directed to 35th Street Wetland Subcommittee members:
Andrew Tucker (ajtucker.28@gmail.com)
Steve Sass (steve.sass@gmail.com)
Alicia Pellegrino (apelleg@southbend.in.gov)
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Relevant background:
WNDU promotes the idea of a park at 35th St
(http://www.wndu.com/content/news/Additional-parks-might-be-in-the-works-for-
South-Bend-465052933.html)
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Relevant background:
▪March 2018 “State of the City” address, Mayor Pete Buttegieg commits to join
the Trust for Public Land’s (TPL) 10-minute Walk Campaign. The Campaign
commits cities to ensuring that every resident has “safe, easy access to a quality
park within a 10-minute (1/2 mile) walk of home by 2050”
(https://10minutewalk.org/).
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