Month: May 2013

Our Partner: Mark Fancey

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Partner Interview: Mark Fancey

Community Development Director
City of Monmouth

What Community Service Center program(s) did you work with?

Community Planning Workshop (CPW)

Briefly describe the project(s) you work on with the CSC

We contracted with CPW in 2008 to lead the update for our parks master plan. CPW completed the project and the city adopted it in 2008.

Why did you decide to work with the Community Service Center (CSC)?

One part was my background coming from the program, I pursued a masters in planning at the University of Oregon as a student. Part two was that we needed improvements on our parks master plan. I found them to be an affordable option and recently became aware of their choice to add park master plans to their repertoire of available services.

What were the benefits of engaging the CSC program?

The CSC is affordable and professional. I felt the project would also work well for students looking for opportunities for experiences that I received during that time. The CSC is great for resume′ building for someone directly out of college.

What role did CSC staff/students/members have in the project?

They organized meetings with city staff and the parks board, provided new information for the process, and coordinated public outreach, and wrote the Master Plan.

How did the engagement of the CSC program(s) increase your organization capacity to complete the project?

I felt the CSC was an extension of city staff; my one man department would not have capacity to complete the project without them.

What advice do you have to other potential community partners about working with the CSC?

I believe the CSC is a great untapped resource for students and the community. Communities in the area can take advantage of the student planners of tomorrow.

Call to Action / Plug Something:

In December 2008, the City Council adopted an updated Monmouth Parks Master Plan. The Master Plan outlines parks system improvements over the next 20 years. The updated Master Plan also includes concept plans for both Main Street Park and Madrona Park. See the Plan!

More about the Community Planning Workshop(CPW)

A Walk in the Woods by Scarlett Philibosian

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Photo by Steve Rafuse

A Walk in the Woods by Scarlett Philibosian

What is healthy riparian habitat along the McKenzie River?  Is it a lot of trees lining the banks of the river?  Do they have to be native tree species?  How far from the waterway does riparian habitat extend?  What about plants growing close to the ground?

My Community Planning Workshop (CPW) team is working with the Eugene Water and Electric Board (EWEB) and local organizations to find the answers to these types of questions.  Talking about what makes up a healthy riparian forest is part of our work in designing a project called the Voluntary Incentive Program (VIP).  Under this program, EWEB will reward landowners who maintain healthy riparian forest habitat on their land.  The program is designed to build positive community relationships, both among neighbors in the lower McKenzie River basin and between landowners, EWEB, and partners in the VIP such as the McKenzie Watershed Council.

Most people living in Eugene drink McKenzie River water, and the VIP will incentivize maintaining land next to the River in ways that translate to better water quality.  But what exactly constitutes habitat that will filter pollutants out of water?  To find out, my CPW team visited the Bergrenn Demonstration Farm, and walked around different types of riparian land.  Here are several pieces of information we learned from VIP partners about riparian forests along the McKenzie River:

  • While nonnative plant species do take up pollutants from the water, some provide less of a filtration service than native species.  For example, the invasive reed canary grass (top picture) has shallow roots, while native clumping grasses have deep root systems that anchor soil and pull pollutants from several feet beneath the surface.  Therefore, minimizing nonnative species on riparian land is important to maintaining good water quality.
  • The canopy of larger trees tend to take up more surface area than do smaller trees.  Canopy cover over the river banks helps slow down the speed at which rain falls on the ground, which reduces erosion and therefore reduces sedimentation, a type of pollution.
  • Leaf-fall and rotting logs results in a rich topsoil layer above the finer soils.  This layer provides habitat for burrowing creatures such as insects and salamanders, and burrowing makes soils more porous.
  • Lastly, different native plant species work in harmony to take up pollutants and protect the riparian land from severe flooding.  Therefore, maintaining many different plant species in the riparian zone is important to good water quality.

Other posts about Scarlett Philibosian

More about the Community Planning Workshop(CPW)