Neighborhood under storm water planter box construction. Columbia Slough and Columbia R. benefit.
A typical urban enviro project for Portland. Supposed habitat enhancement, storm water runoff screening/filtering and reduced parking in front of homes. Trade offs/potentially significant for the watersheds. Where I have seen these types, jutting into the street, there are several gouge marks on the front end of the planter boxes from cars failing to see the reflectors and hazard yellow paint and becoming a temporary planter box ornament. A reasonable expectation, I mean people drive into power poles too.
Here the entire corner will be occupied by a storm water catch basin with foot paths cut through for pedestrian passage.
All this construction is on the downhill side of roads that run perpendicular to the Columbia Slough. In addition to the runoff, several springs run down off the hillside and enter the slough. I have such a spring running behind my property. I have left my property unaltered along the spring’s edges…neighbors along the way have not and I have seen the silt build up over the years, despite inspections, surveys and reviews. Anyway, below is how the storm drain basins are suppose to look upon completion…
We shall see how they function with run off; or, when under a foot of drifting snow and folks inadvertently drive into them. A reasonable attempt to I spose to control runoff of the waters moving South to North into the Columbia River Slough and Columbia River.
The Columbia River Watershed, where the I-205/I-84 meet and East, the terrain slopes toward the slough and the Columbia River.
