Minto-Brown Island Park Floodplain Restoration Project
Natural Resources Conservation Service and the City of Salem

VAI provided design, hydraulic modeling, public involvement, NEPA documentation, bidding services, and construction observation services for this 900+ acre Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) floodplain habitat restoration project at the Minto-Brown Island Park (Willamette River) in Salem, Oregon. This was a Federal Stimulus project with an aggressive design and NEPA schedule, and is the most significant floodplain restoration project the City of Salem has undertaken in recent history.

The project goals were to improve riparian habitat and to improve water quality by removing 200-ac from agricultural use within the park and restoring this area with native Willamette River floodplain plant communities. The VAI team researched Government Land Office maps from 1862 to determine pre-settlement plant communities in the vicinity of the site; and recommended Oak Savannah, Upland and Wet Prairies, Mixed Woodland, Ash Woodland, and Willow Slough as appropriate restoration communities. Preliminary hydraulic modeling of the preferred alternative was conducted to assess potential for impacts to neighboring properties. VAI prepared the Environmental Assessment (EA), and a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) for the project.

“This work resulted in the public having a much improved understanding of the project, which translated into stronger support for proposed restoration...VAI completed the restoration plan including a federal environmental assessment well within our required timeline. The plan was technically and scientifically sound, worked within existing site constraints, transitioned well into exiting areas of the park, and was largely accepted within the community because it reflected the values that the community found in those sites”.

- Sean O’Day, Deputy Manager for the City of Salem