$650K stream restoration project set for Columbia’s Gills Creek
A stretch of Gills Creek in a heavily trafficked area of Columbia was battered by the historic flooding of October 2015. Now a watershed advocacy group, with funding from the federal government and City of Columbia, is embarking on a project to rejuvenate that section of the creek.
The Gills Creek Watershed Association, a nonprofit that works to restore and advocate for the preservation of the creek, is prepping a stream restoration project for the section of Gills Creek that runs alongside Crowson Road, from Fort Jackson Boulevard down to Devine Street. According to city paperwork, it will be a nearly $650,000 project. The largest chunk of that funding will come from federal grant dollars, though the city is contributing $250,000 as part of a grant match. The city’s portion of the funding was approved at a March 2 Council meeting.
Gills Creek Watershed Association Executive Director Carmony Adler said the project is to help address runoff pollution in the creek and improve water quality. Part of the work will be addressing how steep and unstable the creek banks are through that section of the stream.
“The slope of the bank is going to be adjusted some, to help make it not as steep,” Adler said. “There’s going to be some different elements incorporated into the banks, so that there is less erosion. And definitely vegetation, native plants specifically, since they do the best job of both helping remove pollutants and holding the banks in place. We’ll be doing a lot of native plants there.”
Construction on the project could begin in mid-April and run through the end of June.
The section of Gills Creek in question was battered in the 2015 flood. It also runs through a heavily commercialized area, which can create more opportunities for runoff pollution. Adler said all of those factors make it a stretch of stream in need of revitalization.
“Particularly after the 2015 flood, this area was one of the most impaired and heavily trafficked stretches of Gills Creek,” Adler said. “So, due to (the creek) being channelized and all the nearby development, but also compounded with the flood, it is really an area that needs some work to be done.”
Adler pointed out that the restoration work will happen on city and privately owned property. Meyers Brothers Properties owns a shopping center alongside the creek, and Adler said the company has been “incredibly supportive” of the project.
Bill Stangler, who heads the nonprofit Conagree Riverkeeper organization that advocates on behalf of Columbia’s rivers and tributaries, said the Gills Creek restoration is much needed.
“It will make it a more natural stream channel through there,” Stangler said. “It’s a great project. One of the things that the Gills Creek Watershed Association does really well is apply for grants to do stream restoration projects, and Crowson Road is a big one. It’s taken a lot of effort to get to this point, but I’m confident it’s going to get done.”
The Gills Creek project should help reduce stormwater runoff pollution into the water, Columbia Assistant City Manager Clint Shealy said.
Shealy also said the city will take over the maintenance of that section of stream, after the improvements are made.
