St. Vrain Creek Restoration Project

The Town was recently awarded a Community Development Block Grant-Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) for restoration of the St. Vrain Creek, and solicited bids for a design & construction team. After a careful and deliberate review process of the seven qualified proposals, Naranjo Civil Constructors was selected to contract with the Town for the stream restoration project.
According to the Lyons Recovery Action Plan, the St. Vrain Creek restoration entails river way improvements including rock formations and re-vegetation, to reintroduce wetlands, slow the flow of the river, and create natural areas for fish and plants to thrive and support recreational use of the river. The project will also reestablish pedestrian paths and access points for river users. As part of the grant conditions, the project must be complete by the end of March 2016.
The preliminary negotiations are underway, and public meetings will be announced when determined.

DRAFT Flood Landowner Permission Form

A key strategy for reducing the increased flood and geomorphic risks is to reconnect the channel to the floodplain - a process that requires considerable earthwork, and unfortunately, the removal of trees in key areas along the channel.
While it is absolutely critical that some trees be removed in order to construct the remodeled floodplain, every effort will be made to preserve as much existing vegetation as possible, giving preference to the healthy natives and removing non-native and sickly trees that have populated the creek corridor for many decades.
To offset the removal of existing trees, this project will also re-vegetate all graded and barren areas with a diversity of native riparian species that will help to increase the resiliency and stability of the channel and floodplain.
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Revegetation and Landscaping

In early April, over a thousand willow stakes were planted along the banks. At this stage, the young willows are extremely vulnerable to damage - please allow time for the habitat to establish, by limiting activities in these environmentally sensitive areas.
Following Spring run-off (expected June to August), crews will continue to revegetate the area with additional native plantings.

Select the images to view the landscaping plans.