“In the middle of construction the
State Historic Preservation Office said
we had to hold off on part of the living
shoreline until we really know if the
Scottish Chief is there or not,” said
Karla Price, City landscape architect.
The living shoreline was being
established in front of a seawall to
break wave action and improve habitat
and water quality.
Ash hired a marine archaeology firm
to conduct a sonar scan and dive the
site, which turned out to be a marine
railway, not the Scottish Chief. The
sunken wreckage is two parallel lines
of built-up timbers that run from
offshore to the riverbank. Ships would
be positioned between the parallel
timbers and hauled up on land for
repairs.
“Some people were certain it was
the Scottish Chief, but they never
went all the way through to having
an archaeological diver involved,” Ash
said. “It was a relief for everybody
4│ TRENDS
that it wasn’t the Scottish Chief. It
certainly opened up more options for
waterfront usage by the City.”
Other issues included removing nearly
2 feet of contaminated soil throughout
the site and protecting a spring where
manatees come to drink the fresh
water and bask in its 72-degree waters
during winter. More than 20 agencies
and interested parties were involved
in the permitting, ranging from the
Florida Department of Environmental
Protection to the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration, and
compromise was crucial. For example,
the original design called for 15 boat
slips; only three were approved. “We
were able to get those only because
of Jan being persistent and being
able to modify plans to address their
concerns,” Price said.
“We worked very hard at bringing all
the agencies together to work on the
permitting,” Ash said. “If it hadn’t been
for collaboration and working with the
multiple agencies, we wouldn’t have
gotten as far as we did. The City was
very, very flexible – they rolled with
the punches very well.”
One Project, Many Goals
Carson Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin,
is the crown jewel of the city’s park
system. This 134-acre park is on a
peninsula surrounded by Half Moon
Lake. Only two entrances provide
access, and one is over a narrow,
structurally deficient, and functionally
obsolete bridge and causeway. This
summer, the old structure is coming
out. What’s going in will be much
more than a simple bridge.
“We want to not just make a gateway
but also create an extension of the
park,” said Dave Solberg, city engineer.
“We want to have activity along the
causeway – lookouts, fishing piers,
places to carry a kayak or canoe
down to the lake. We are trying to
improve transportation facilities and
recreational opportunities.”