Council leans to decouple RSIs from North Creek culvert replacement to preserve permitting and grants

Senior engineer Steve Demmer briefed the Gig Harbor City Council on March 14 on the North Creek culvert-replacement project and the status of related remote-site incubators (RSIs). The culvert replacement is a fish-passage project (currently ~60% design) that would remove a partial fish barrier, replace it with an approximately 140-foot concrete bridge, relocate utilities, perform stream restoration and extend a trail. The design contract is about $1.3 million; a 30% design 2023 cost estimate was $7.51 million, and staff escalated that to slightly over $9 million for construction today.

Demmer explained that the RSIs are wooden-flow-control and barrel incubation structures originally built in 1971 and historically operated by the commercial fishermen’s club; they can support very large egg counts when supplied by the state hatchery. Options examined by staff and the consultant included a temporary/mobile RSI, a new permanent RSI, or an acclimation pond (a 20x30x3-foot concept that could rear roughly 100,000–200,000 juvenile chum). But staff said two constraints weigh heavily against adding those elements to the current culvert project: (1) conservation land where the city placed recently purchased parcels is encumbered by a covenant that prohibits activities that impair habitat or alter site hydrology, which would preclude an RSI or pond on that land; and (2) the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife has indicated a moratorium on permitting new RSIs while it inventories facilities and sets policy and advised separating an RSI proposal from the culvert replacement.

Demmer said including an RSI or acclimation pond in the culvert project would forfeit the project’s current eligibility for the state Fish and Habitat Enhancement Project streamlined permitting process (and for the federal Nationwide Permit) and would remove the city from the SEPA exemption the streamlined path provides. That change would extend permitting timelines (staff estimated an additional 6–18 months for an individual Army Corps permit) and disqualify the project from some construction grants. He also noted potential costs and multi-year timelines to provide a new water source (a well could cost $1–2 million and take years to secure).

Council members pressed staff on stakeholder engagement and the fishermen’s club’s water rights. Several councilors said fishermen had been long-time stewards of the RSIs; staff said the brood-document that Fish and Wildlife’s hatchery unit issues to provide eggs is not the same as a permitting authorization and that DFW’s permitting records did not show formal authorization for the RSI operations. Staff reported one meeting with the fishermen’s club (November) and indicated further engagement had been limited. Council members questioned whether removing the physical infrastructure would eliminate the club’s water right; staff said it’s unlikely the water right could be retained if the diversion structure is removed and not used.

Staff recommended, and the majority of council favored, decoupling the projects: proceed with the culvert replacement now to preserve streamlined permitting and grant eligibility, and, in a future budget cycle, fund a feasibility study to evaluate RSI or acclimation-pond options separately. Council asked staff to return with clearer cost estimates for RSI alternatives and any legal implications (including water-right and takings questions) before making decisions about compensating or otherwise accommodating the fishermen’s club.

Next steps: staff will continue the culvert project permitting and return with a proposed scope and budget for an RSI feasibility study and any legal clarifications requested by council.