It’s a Pond again. I started last week’s blog in a similar vein, I know. Repetitive though it may be, I just came from a walk around the Pond before sitting down to write this and that’s what hit me first. The water level is rising, the color and clarity of the pond is markedly improved, snags are making their way back into the pond, the shoreline is alive again with native milkweed, Joe-Pye weed and other native plants (and some weedy species, too); early pioneers to be joined in the coming weeks by seeds, plugs, and a variety of native plants and trees. In sum, while the restoration continues, North Pond is a Pond again, and a healthier and more sustainable one to boot.
While things are coming together at the Pond, drainage work continues in the fenced area to the north. Infrastructure work will conclude there in the next 10 days, to be followed with site grading and planting of new grass seed. This improved park area is slated to re-open in September after Labor Day. Additional drainage installation will happen on the Pond’s west side, with potential intermittent path closures possible though the week of August 15.
I referenced last week that we have a few larger scale infrastructure improvements to complete in August prior to wide scale plugging and planting of the Pond’s shores this fall. One of these upgrades, new fencing around portions of the Pond, will be discussed in next week’s blog. Up next for contractors will be the replacement of sewer lines from the Pond’s water outlet on its south, running through the park to the corner of Fullerton and Stockton. The replacement of this existing sewer line, while not directly related to the North Pond project itself, was required by the city during permit review and approval. While we will take every care to protect surrounding habitat and trees, this work requires the potential removal of trees that sit directly over the sewer lines being replaced. In some cases these trees were already crowded with stunted growth, as is the case with the small maple grove, and this work will benefit the remaining trees. In other places, new native trees and understory plants will be restored to the areas disturbed by this necessary work. We hope to have this portion of the project completed by Labor Day, with restoration to begin immediately thereafter in early September.
In closing, do you have a question about the North Pond restoration project that you’ve been hankering to have answered? Some followers of this blog have reached out asking for more details on the dredging process and methods, what each piece of equipment is used for, what those huge concrete things are and more. We will focus an upcoming blog entry on answering your most burning questions about the project. Send inquiries to: info@lincolnparkconservancy.org. We will answer several in the blog and respond to everyone individually. Thank you in advance for your questions. To learn more about the North Pond Restoration Project, visit our project page. Stay up-to-date on current work via our weekly blog series.
