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HomeMy WebLinkAboutEACandRiverWindowsHistorySteve Sass Past Chair South Bend Board of Park Commissioner's Ecological Advocacy Committee steve.sass@gmail.com (574)340-9239 July 7, 2023 Dear friends, colleagues, city leaders, and residents concerned with South Bend's treatment of its riparian areas, Following my resignation from the South Bend Board of Park Commissioner's Ecological Advocacy Committee (EAC), I wish to provide a written account of the committee's interaction with Venues Parks & Arts (VPA) staff and the park board. To my knowledge, the following is an accurate account of events from 2018 to the present. Where applicable, I have provided supporting evidence in photographs of site visits, EAC minutes, and park board reports. My motivation in compiling this document is to provide future ecological leaders with the tools needed to promote drastic change in how the city stewards its riverbanks and slopes. July 2018 VPA Director of Facilities & Grounds John Martinez asked the EAC for planting advice on the slope of Gov. Joe Kernan Park. On July 24, VPA naturalist Garry Harrington joined committee members Andrew Tucker and myself on site to assess the property. Our trio found sediment washing into the river and a sign overgrown with vegetation indicating the hillside had been part of a restoration project. Garry Harrington and Andrew Tucker survey erosion and hillside destabilization at Gov. Joe Kernan Park Following the visit, committee members advised the department that the bank was too unnaturally steep to be remedied with plantings and recommended the counsel of a civil engineer or landscape architect to advise on terracing the bank. July 30, 2018 City Forester Brent Thompson shared a pdf document entitled SouthBendRiverWindow. The document contained locations, procedures, and before/after pictures of “river windows” at approximately 14 locations. Among the locations documented was the hillside at Gov. Joe Kernan Park. According to the photograph's timestamps, they cleared the hill's shrub layer sometime between June 2 and August 18, 2017. The area in the photographs below is the same spot surveyed by Harrington, Tucker, and Sass the following summer. By the overgrowth of the honeysuckle, it's apparent the invasive shrubs regrew quickly. Notably, they performed this work at the height of bird nesting season. The full document can be seen here: https://www.indiananature.net/files/VPA/SouthBendRiverWindows.pdf Note: I added the yellow highlights on the first page. A sign explaining that invasives have been removed is nearly illegible due to invasive plant growth A snippet of the document SouthBendRiverWindow showing the widespread cutting of vegetation at Gov. Joe Kernan Park July 11, 2019 The minutes of the Ecological Advocacy Committee indicate that John Martinez suggested that an upcoming project for the EAC is to create “Standards/ best management practices of River Windows within VPA Parks.” Excerpt from the July 11, 2019 EAC Minutes September 9, 2019 Concerned over park capital improvement projects advancing without their input, the EAC requested VPA provide an action matrix for upcoming projects and suggested creating best management practices for riverbank stabilization. Excerpt from the September 9, 2019 EAC Minutes November 9, 2019 The EAC is introduced to Andrew Force, horticulturist with VPA Facilities & Grounds. The committee expressed concerns to Mr. Force over the ecological impact of the “river window” at Gov. Joe Kernan Park, and again recommended working with an expert on bank stabilization. Excerpts from the November 9, 2019 EAC Minutes January 6, 2020 With continued concern over the treatment of riparian areas, the EAC asked then VPA staff member Matthew Moyers to revise the 2017 Natural Resources Management Plan and add “bank stabilization” to the list of concerns. Good Shepherd Montessori teacher John DiTillo and IUSB professor Andrew Schnabel joined the EAC. Both would later cite their experiences of witnessing staff spraying native plants along the riverbank as their motivation to apply. Excerpt from the January 6, 2020 EAC Minutes August 3, 2020 Garry Harrington reported that VPA will be cutting in river windows near Veteran's Memorial Park and is seeking input from the EAC. Excerpt from the August 3, 2020 EAC Minutes December 14, 2020 After eight months of work, I presented a draft of a completely revised and expanded Natural Resources Management Plan (NRMP) to the South Bend Board of Park Commissioners, who unanimously voted it into policy. The plan identified “erosion and bank stabilization” as one of its “guiding ecological principles” and created action strategies for vegetation buffers, river windows, and shoreline stabilization. Guiding ecological principle from 2021 NRMP Vegetation Buffers action strategy from 2021 NRMP River Windows action strategy from 2021 NRMP Slopes, Banks, and Shoreline Stabilization strategy from 2021 NRMP The entire 2021 Natural Resources Management Plan can be found by following this hyperlink: https://sbvpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/2021NRMPFinal.pdf May 19, 2021 EAC member Emily Alderton noticed large-scale vegetation clearance along Riverside Drive. Unsure of who was doing this work, she contacted EAC and VPA staff for guidance. May 19, 2021 email from Emily Alderton to EAC and numerous VPA staff May 21, 2021 Based on Emily's concerns, VPA paused the project and issued a revised protocol for river window procedures. Added to the list are provisions for protecting steep banks, areas with high water flow, and nesting birds. These procedures again call for re-vegetating the riverbanks with native plants, and the 2021 revision refers to two appendices of suitable plants. To my knowledge, the department has neither replanted the cleared areas nor created these appendices. 5/21/2021 updated river vista procedures August 8, 2021 City forester Brent Thompson reported to the EAC that river window work was about to recommence and that he had been instructed to make the river look like Kernan Park “all the way up.” However, neither the methods described by Mr. Thompson nor those listed in their guiding procedural document included the widespread application of non-selective foliar herbicides to woody or non- woody vegetation. Excerpt from August 8, 2021 EAC minutes September 30, 2021 I received an email from Ricky Klee, a South Bend resident concerned about the river window project. Among Mr. Klee's concerns were heavy machinery/compaction, flail mowers, unmarked/non- delineated use of herbicides, bare areas of soil, and an influx of invasive species due to the heavy disturbance. Ricky Klee's September 30, 2021 email detailing his concerns October 1, 2021 I emailed the rest of the EAC members with Mr. Klee’s complaint (who I kept anonymous at the time). EAC member Emily Alderton responded that she had seen the river clearing and shared Mr. Klee’s concerns. Body of October 1, 2021 email from then EAC member Emily Alderton Later that day, EAC member John DiTillo weighed in, Portion of October 1, 2021 email from EAC member John DiTillo Upon returning to the site, Emily Alderton took many photographs of the results of the work, which she shared with the committee. Emily's email further detailed her concerns with the project and her conversation with an anonymous VPA employee who confided that they were also disappointed with the extent of the clearing. Two of over 40 photos by Emily Alderton of the riverbank along Riverside Drive on October 1, 2021 —continued — October 1, 2021 follow-up email from EAC member Emily Alderton October 7, 2021 After visiting the site, VPA naturalist Garry Harrington commented and essentially agreed with the EAC and citizen’s concerns. Email from Garry Harrington to EAC on October 7, 2021 October 10, 2021 I visited Gov. Joe Kernan Park to get an idea of what look VPA desired for the entirety of Riverside Drive, and I found the entire slope recently sprayed with herbicide. Most of the plants killed were native riverbank grapes (Vitis riparia). The slope at Gov. Joe Kernan Park following treatment with herbicide on October 10, 2021 October 18, 2021 At the monthly park board meeting, VPA Partnerships, Community and Standards Coordinator Matthew Moyers presented the commissioners with a draft resolution renewing the Ecological Advocacy Committee. The most substantial change to the renewing resolution was the introduction of a mandatory term limit to the chair position. October 27, 2021 Following the completion of the vegetation removal along Riverside Drive, I walked the trail and conducted a botanical survey of the trees left behind. Of the 98 remaining trees, 37 (38%) are exotic to St. Joseph County. 35 of which (36% overall) are “officially invasive” in Indiana, as per the Indiana Invasive Species Council. December 6, 2021 At the regular meeting of the EAC, talk continued to center around the river window project. Brent Thompson commented that in the Spring of 2022, the crew would begin work on Plaza and Pier Parks. The EAC questioned the wisdom of removing vegetation on such steep slopes, reminded VPA staff that we still haven't seen plans for re-vegetation, and offered to visit the Plaza Park site with staff. Excerpt of December 6, 2021 EAC Minutes December 9, 2021 In the EAC’s report to the South Bend Board of Park Commissioners, I wrote extensively about the committee’s concerns over river windows. The following Monday, December 12, I presented the report to the commissioners, with photographs of the damage to the city’s riparian area. Excerpt from December 2021 report from EAC to Board of Park Commissioners January 10, 2022 At the year's first EAC meeting, the committee reminded staff that we are concerned about upcoming work to the hillside at Plaza Park. Garry Harrington commented that due to changes in city engineering staff, the site visit had been postponed indefinitely. Excerpt from the January 10, 2022 EAC Minutes February 14, 2022 At the regular EAC meeting, the committee again raised concerns over the upcoming work on Plaza Park. Garry Harrington explained that the weather has been too poor for a visit but vowed to set something up. EAC member Andy Schnabel suggested that the discussion should include the upper- level staff. EAC member Lindsay Chadderton volunteered to draft a letter explaining the EAC’s concerns. Excerpt from the February 14, 2022 EAC Minutes March 26, 2022 The EAC completed the draft of a memorandum to the South Bend Board of Park Commissioners, VPA Executive Director Aaron Perri, Office of Sustainability Director Evie Baughman, VPA Director of Facilities & Grounds John Martinez, South Bend City Forester Brent Thompson, and others. The memorandum again outlined the EAC’s concerns over the River Window project and offered specific recommendations. April 25, 2022 In response to the EAC’s memo, Executive Director Aaron Perri and other VPA officials met virtually with several EAC members to discuss the committee’s concerns. All parties expressed a desire to work towards a solution amicable to everyone. One notable oddity from this discussion was the sudden departure of the term “river windows.” Matthew Moyers tried to explain that all of this work was nothing new but, in fact, part of the department’s ongoing “trail maintenance.” During this discussion, I stated that the ultimate solution is to work with various regional stakeholders to create a comprehensive, long-term river management plan. May 14, 2022 EAC member Charlene Rountree and I met on-site at Plaza Park and later along the East Race with VPA staff members Garry Harrington, John Martinez, Matthew Moyers, and Brent Thompson to advise on best practices to open up views of the St. Joseph River without further exacerbating the existing erosion problems. Eroding shoreline at Plaza Park as seen on May 14, 2022 June 27, 2022 The EAC discussed the May 14 site visits and reiterated our position that on such a steep incline, if they absolutely had to, VPA could cut the honeysuckle, but the stumps should not be removed or treated with herbicides. Because the honeysuckle will regrow aggressively, yearly maintenance will become necessary. The committee again questioned the wisdom of this project. Excerpt of the June 27, 2022 EAC minutes September 19, 2022 At the September EAC committee meeting, Matthew Moyers reported that he knew of no updates on future riverbank work but stated if future plans unfolded, the EAC would be VPA's primary consultants. Excerpt from the September 19, 2022 EAC minutes October 24, 2022 At the October EAC meeting, John Martinez reported that the approved 2023 budget included funds for replanting the cleared riparian areas but did not provide any specifics. Snippet from the October 24, 2022 EAC minutes May 22, 2023 Along with the now former Office of Sustainability Director Evie Baughman, I was the dual recipient of an email from South Bend resident Debra Durall. Debra had witnessed city crews spraying the riparian area along Riverside Drive with the herbicide Triclopyr 3 (identified by the applicator). Debra had several justifiable concerns: •The wisdom and legality of spraying herbicide in an area situated between the river and a well-traveled pedestrian/domestic animal walkway (on what she described as a “breezy day”) •The failure close or cordon off the treatment site during the application •The non-selective targeting of all vegetation Dead and dying prairie trillium (Trillium recurvatum) along the bank of the St. Joe River (May 22, 2023) June 22, 2023 I received a phone call from Jessica Merkling, an Urban Wildlife Biologist from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Jessica called me to relay a complaint the DNR received from South Bend resident Susan Knight about the condition of the riparian area at Plaza Park, notably the amount of accumulated trash, which she described as a hazard to waterfowl and turtles. I contacted Ms. Knight to let her know that I was looking into her concerns, and later that afternoon, I visited the site and found that the VPA staff had disregarded the EAC’s advice and sprayed herbicide onto the foliage of the shrubs in and around the steep slope and along the riverbank. In addition, as she described, I found a significant amount of trash along the river’s edge, likely aided by the removed vegetation buffer. I passed on my findings and concerns to EAC and VPA staff. Steep slope at Plaza Park post clearing and foliar herbicide application (June 22, 2023) June 24, 2023 After four years of trying, the May 22 and June 22 incidents, coupled with John Martinez’s reply to my email regarding the June 22 citizen complaint, led me to conclude that the EAC’s efforts to work with VPA leadership to create ecologically-responsible riverbank management practices are futile. I realize that my pessimism isn’t necessarily shared by my EAC colleagues, and I wish them the best in their efforts to change a system that sees itself as well overall and doesn’t want to be changed. Epilogue Following my resignation, I returned to Gov. Joe Kernan Park, where this journey began, to find the sprayed hillside a combination of bare ground and early successional, mostly Eurasian weeds. Gov. Joe Kernan (July 2, 2023)