Explanation
This ordinance authorizes the Director of the Recreation and Parks Department to enter into contract with Oxbow River & Stream Restoration, Inc. for safety improvements to the Lower Olentangy Boat Ramp. The work would remove the wood pilings, a large tree lodged within the second bridge opening, and remnant concrete rubble and dangerous debris from the low head dam. This work will also include a reshaping of the gravel/cobble bed material to a more stable channel shape that will divert flow from its current direct path at the bridge pier.
Background: The Lower Olentangy Boat Ramp is one of the city’s oldest boating access points in the downtown area. Located just north of Spring and Long Streets, near the confluence of the Olentangy River and Scioto River, the boat ramp has been used for special events, public canoe and kayak access, and police water patrol boats for Red, White, and Boom. In 2015, the removal of the Main Street dam on the Scioto River, creating the Scioto Greenways, substantially lowered the water level of the confluence area of the Olentangy and Scioto rivers. The lowered water elevation caused erosion at the Spring/Long Streets Bridge and the boat ramp. This erosion has exposed historic wood pilings, the northeast bridge pier, and a deteriorated low head dam originally used by the vacated City of Columbus Power Plant located at 620 West Nationwide Boulevard. These current conditions are extremely hazardous to all recreational river traffic as well as public access from the boat ramp. The improvements to the boat ramp will support the mission of the Recreation and Parks Master Plan by providing safe and easily accessible boating opportunities along Columbus’ major waterways. Increasing the safety of recreational use of the city’s waterways provides more opportunities for residents to kayak, canoe, fish, and bird. All of these activities are important components of a healthy lifestyle and provide important conservation of...
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