City outlines Fippening Park stormwater swale project to reduce phosphorus runoff; DEQ grant paused pending federal guidance

City engineering consultants and parks staff presented details Feb. 24 on a stormwater infiltration project at Fippening Park intended to reduce phosphorus entering the lake.

Justin Shaw of HMH Engineering said the project uses the park’s sandy soils to infiltrate and treat stormwater before it reaches the lake. The design calls for an open swale with soft slopes, five dry wells to handle large storm events, and a CDS (vortex) manhole to capture sediment. Shaw said the deepest point of the swale will be roughly 7 feet and that side slopes range from about 4:1 to 6:1; the swale footprint extends roughly 75 feet across the site. A new paved east–west path will provide public access and allow maintenance crews to reach the swale internals.

"What we're gonna do is we're gonna put in a manhole here, catch the water that typically goes to the lake untreated, bring it into this swale system...let it slowly infiltrate through the soil, and then get cleaned up that way," Shaw said.

Shaw said the project was bid in January and attracted nine bidders; Sunray, a contractor from Sandpoint, submitted the low bid, which was below the engineer's estimate. He said the contractor can start as early as March 3, weather and site conditions permitting, and has 30 working days to complete the work. Shaw added that the contractor and city will seek to minimize neighborhood impacts, including limiting early-morning equipment noise.

Parks staff said several ash trees in the work area, which staff attributed to emerald ash borer damage, will be removed and replaced with a mix of different species. City staff also said several trees designated as plaque or specimen trees will be salvaged when possible and that clover will be used in portions of the planting plan north of the path. Irrigation lines will be reconstructed where needed to establish vegetation after construction.

Bill, a parks staff member who introduced the park-side updates, said the city received a letter from the Idaho Department of Lands noting that the President's Office of Management and Budget temporarily paused federal grants, loans and assistance programs on Jan. 27. Bill said Department of Lands staff told the city there was no estimate for when federal funds would be released and encouraged patience. He said city staff will finish the grant package and have the application ready so work can proceed if funding is released.

"At this time, there will be no estimate on the time frame upon which federal funds will be released from this pause," he said, reading from the letter provided by the Department of Lands.

Staff emphasized the project is information-only for the commission; no vote or formal action was requested that night. Bill said the department has worked on several recent stormwater projects around the city and described this as one of the larger recent sites; Chris Bosley, the city engineer, said much of the remaining downtown stormwater work is contingent on acquiring land or easements.

Other park updates that night included planned replacement of the Bluegrass Park playground (the current wooden structure was described as too deteriorated for continued repair), the hire of a new administrative assistant (Chris Bridal) starting March 3, upcoming interviews for two grounds-maintenance positions, and continuing work to finalize MOUs with Little League and a local baseball organization. Staff also warned that high winds and saturated soils could prompt temporary cemetery closures for safety during wind events.

No formal votes were taken on the Fippening Park project; the presentation concluded as an information item. The commission's next regular meeting is March 17 in the Library Community Room.