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City and Prescott Creeks advance Watson Woods in-lieu fee program; conservation easement and lease details under review
Summary
City staff and Prescott Creeks updated council on the Watson Woods Riparian Preserve in-lieu fee mitigation program, explaining the need for a conservation easement (site protection instrument), a joint management plan, and next steps including Army Corps review and APS coordination.
City staff and Prescott Creeks presented an update on Jan. 27 on plans to formalize the Watson Woods Riparian Preserve as an in-lieu fee mitigation site, a program that would accept mitigation fees for unavoidable impacts to jurisdictional waters and apply them to restoration at the preserve.
Brian Reese, the city's water resources manager, introduced Michael Bird of Prescott Creeks to discuss program requirements. Bird explained the in-lieu fee program provides mitigation credits under section 404 of the Clean Water Act, administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and that a site-protection instrument (a conservation easement) is required before the program can be finalized: "This is the important document for this particular INLUFI program. This is the enabling instrument," he said.
Staff described the preserve as roughly 160 acres upstream of Watson Lake with an existing history of restoration and public engagement. An environmental-site assessment and hydrologic evaluation were presented; staff reported no significant adverse change to Watson Lake water supply and suggested some restoration could slightly improve conditions by slowing and spreading flows to reduce sediment delivery to the lake.
The city and Prescott Creeks explained they have carved the preserve into conservation areas and lease areas (roughly 34 acres of lease area) so necessary city infrastructure can be maintained while core conservation parcels remain encumbered in perpetuity. Staff also summarized coordination with APS to reroute an upsized power line around the preserve's core to reduce visual and fire risk.
Council raised fiduciary questions about the preserve's $1 lease and asked for financial information about Prescott Creeks (board depth, fund balances, use of mitigation fees) and clarity on parcel/GIS boundaries. Prescott Creeks representatives said the organization would be the conservation-easement grantee and responsible for annual monitoring; they said mitigation fees are restricted to on-the-ground restoration and plan administration and that the Army Corps requires annual accounting of credit transfers.
