Mr. Ken Lanfear
City of Florence
P.O. Box 340
Florence, Oregon 97439

Subject:  U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Stormwater Management

Dear Mr. Lanfear:

I attended a July 10, 1998 meeting between the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (COE), Oregon Division of State Lands (DSL) and representatives for the proposed Fred Meyer project. John van Staveren of Pacific Habitat Services invited me to attend the meeting since stormwater related issues were going to be on the agenda and the COE may have questions regarding the March 31, 1998 letter that Brown and Caldwell prepared regarding the Fred Meyer project. Pacific Habitat Services is working with Fred Meyer on wetland related issues. As we discussed prior to the meeting, our participation in the meeting would help us understand the COE’s involvement in local stormwater management projects.

The focus of the discussion led by Chris Thoms, COE, was on the practicality and potential impacts from the proposed stormwater infiltration system for the proposed Fred Meyer facility. Patty Caswell represented DSL. Ms Thoms directed most of the questions to the Fred Meyer representatives. She appeared to be most interested in hearing from AHBL (Fred Meyer’s engineer) about the potential impacts from the proposed infiltration system on local groundwater and surface water conditions. In her review of the Fred Meyer submittal, Ms. Thoms noted inconsistencies in the AHBL Storm Drainage Report and the recommendations made in the Brown and Caldwell letter dated March 31, 1998. AHBL noted that the report had not yet been updated to incorporate the recommendations from our letter.

Ms. Thoms stated that the COE has received a number of inquiries from City of Florence citizens regarding localized flooding in the area. As a result the COE has decided to be more involved in local stormwater management planning. She questioned me as to our schedule for completing the drainage master plan. She then asked if Fred Meyer could wait until the master plan was complete prior to the COE making a decision. Fred Meyer responded by saying that a two year delay would stop the project. Ms. Thoms stated that the COE would most likely make a decision prior to September, while Ms. Caswell did not indicate when a decision from DSL would be forthcoming.

This is the first time I have seen the COE involved in local stormwater planning issues. I asked Ms. Thoms about this apparent new role for the COE. She stated that within the last six months, the COE has decided to be more involved in localized flooding issues. This is a new policy direction for the COE. We will schedule a meeting with Ms. Thoms at a later date to further determine the extent of the COE’s involvement in the stormwater planning process. Once we understand this new role for the COE and potentially, DSL, we will recommend a process to keep them informed and included in the stormwater planning process.

Please call me if you have any questions regarding the meeting.

Very truly yours,

BROWN AND CALDWELL

James R. Hansen, P.E.
Project Manager