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CREEKS MASTER PLAN
The master plan was adopted by the City Council in
1993. It envisions a low-speed bike and hike trail through the downtown area
to serve as both an alternate and an adjunct to the Iron Horse Trail. The
route extends from the old railroad bridge on the Iron Horse Trail in Civic
Park East to Near Court in the south and Olympic Boulevard in the west. It
encourages businesses next to the creeks to take advantage of their presence
with outdoor dining, overlooks, etc.
The master plan calls for extensive habitat restoration, both removal of
exotics and establishment of wildlife-friendly native plants. It extends the
riparian zone by planting trees that will support birds and butterflies
beyond the creek banks themselves. It employs various water quality
improvement measures including riffles and the removal or modification of
fish-blocking drop structures in anticipation of the day when the downtown
creeks could host salmon and steelhead as they historically did until the
1960’s, when flood control projects prevented the fish from
migrating upstream as far as Walnut Creek.
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