Sunday, December 14, 2008

December Meeting Reminder

First Creek Stewardship Plan

Meeting Reminder:
First Creek Stewardship Plan
Monday, December 15th, 1:00 Portland Avenue Community Center

We'll be talking about next steps and a possible clean-up in January, plus a few other things. Please join us if you're interested in this project.

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

First Creek - Fairbanks to Emerald Queen Casino

Photographs of First Creek Watershed, between Fairbanks and Emerald Queen Casino, December 1st, 2008


































Participants in First Creek Stewardship Plan

Draft of Participants in First Creek Stewardship Plan
From November 24th meeting at Portland Avenue Community Center.

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First Creek Community Stewardship Plan

City of Tacoma
• Environmental Services Division
Transmission Maintenance – access to sanitary and storm lines
Engineering – replacement of sanitary and storm lines
Solid Waste – disposal options (Call-to-Haul - Blightmobile)

• Public Works Department
Streets and Grounds – pavement management scores
Building and Land Use Services – permitting
GIS - mapping

• Tacoma Police Department – CPTED
• Tacoma Water Department – replacement of water mains
• Tacoma Power Department – power transmission lines
• Tacoma Fire Department – fire suppression and prevention


Puyallup Tribe of Indians
• Tribal Housing Authority
• Tribal News
• Environmental
• Natural Resources
• Water Quality
• Fisheries
• Historic Preservation
• Planning and land Use Services
• GIS


Community Partners
• First Creek Neighbors
• T.E.A.M. – Tacoma Eastside Action Membership
• Tacoma Housing Authority
• Tacoma School District
• Metro Parks Tacoma
• Green Tacoma Partnership
• TACID – Tacoma Area Coalition of Individuals with Disabilities
• WRIA 10 – Puyallup/White River
• Puget Sound Partnership
• Washington Native Plant Society
• Tahoma Audubon Society

Tribe and neighbors united to restore First Creek

By John Larson
For Puyallup Tribal News
jlarson@tacomaweekly.com
Published on: November 27, 2008


Tribe and neighbors united to restore First Creek

A name of a place can convey an image or paint a picture with words. To David Whited, the appropriate name for the stream that runs along the East Side of Tacoma and feeds into the Puyallup River is First Creek. It has been called a lot of other things – Clay Creek, Lister Gulch, ‘T’ Street Gulch – but calling it by a proper name will restore water quality as well as the neighborhood’s image as far as David Whited is concerned.

A grant writer and planner with Puyallup Tribe, David Whited is the point person for the tribal government in an ambitious, cooperative effort to restore the watershed. Some of the work has begun, with the Tribe, the city of Tacoma and neighborhood groups getting together to clear out debris and chase away criminal elements.




















PHOTO BY JOHN LARSON
Martin Stoaks, right, and Guy Thompson inspect a homeless camp they found while walking along First Creek Nov. 24th



Long ago Puyallup Indians had a village along First Creek. Part of it runs on reservation land, near Emerald Queen Casino.

David Whited discussed the creek’s past, present and future during Tacoma City Council’s Environment and Public Works Committee meeting Nov. 18.

At one point this was a stream with salmon. Over many decades it was managed into a series of culverts. Along the way it acquired various names. It is Clay Creek on some maps, although David Whited said no one calls it that. Most people use various names that end with gulch.

Tacoma City Council passed a resolution Nov. 18 approving the city’s involvement in developing a stewardship plan for the watershed.

City Councilmember Rick Talbert, who represents the East Side, said the two governments have collaborated on some environmental efforts. But he sees this as moving into a deeper level of interaction. He has often called for such interaction in his seven years on the council. “I do not think we can continue to talk about having that collaboration,” he said. “We need to dig in our heels and get to work.”

To read John Larson's full article visit the link below:
http://www.puyalluptribalnews.net/article/481/

First Creek Stewardship - November Meeting Notes

I called the meeting today to begin the discussion about creating the Community Stewardship Plan for the First Creek Watershed. I'm attaching the list of partners/players that we developed during that meeting. David plans to talk with his tribal representatives and hopes to persuade them to allocate funds to hire an experienced facilitator and consultant to draft the stewardship plan. He has already had a conversation with Eric Anderson (Tacoma City Manager) and will contact Alisa O'Hanlon (Tacoma Government Relations Officer) to see if the City will allocate matching funds for the hiring of the consultant/facilitator. Dan Fear volunteered to use his experience as a former program manager for the Boeing Airplane Company to lead the effort and some people in the group think he should get paid for it if he does but there simply is no money for such things at this time. Perhaps David can come up with the money when he talks to the tribe and to the City Manager.

Chris would like to meet with the group in two weeks to continue the discussion. David indicated he would be unavailable until after the new year. The group set upon Monday, December 15th at 1:00 in the Portland Avenue Community Center for the next meeting. Chris asked everyone to look online at other examples of stewardship plans to see if there is a model that we could follow or to identify specific components that should be included in the First Creek Stewardship Plan.

Attending Meeting: David Whited, Guy Thompson, Martin Stoaks, Tiffany Stoaks, Dan Fear, Jane Dudley, Edwina Magrum, John Larson (Tacoma Weekly & Puyallup Tribal News) and Chris Ott.

In the meanwhile, have a happy and safe Thanksgiving.

Submitted by Chris Ott
Emailed 11/24/08