The final public meeting for the Pine Creek Watershed Conservation Plan is anticipated for late September/early October at the Rose Barn in North Park. The purpose of the meeting is to present the Draft Plan to the public and solicit comments on the overall plan and management strategies. The meeting will include a presentation outlining the plan and the management strategies, a brief discussion of some of the priority strategies, and a question and answer session. A few copies of the Draft Plan will be on hand for participants to review. The Draft Plan will also be available on this website, NAEC’s website, and at local libraries. Stay tuned—more details will be posted soon. Please check back for more information!

APRIL 2010 PROJECT UPDATES

The second public meeting on Thursday, March 25, 2010 at the Rose Barn in North Park was well attended—53 participants and 9 public officials signed in. The public meeting attendees provided input on the draft management strategies for each resource—Land, Water, Biological, Recreational, and Cultural. Your comments will be incorporated into the Management Strategies for the Draft and Final versions of the Plan. THANK YOU FOR YOUR INPUT!!

Public Meeting #2:  Prioritization Exercise Results

Biological

Land

Recreation/Cultural

Water

FEBRUARY 2010 PROJECT UPDATES

The second public meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, March 25, 2010 at the Rose Barn in North Park from 6:30 PM – 8:00 PM. The purpose of the meeting is to obtain public input on the project to date and the draft management strategies that have been developed.  As the pathway to implementation of project recommendations, the management strategies are one of the most important results of the project. Your input will help to tailor these strategies to meet the needs of the Pine Creek Watershed.

The meeting will include a project overview presentation, which will be given at 6:30 PM.  Following the presentation, attendees can visit several stations and provide additional input on the content and prioritization of the management strategies. Click on the image below for more details.

DECEMBER 2009 PROJECT UPDATES

The second public meeting will be scheduled for early March 2010. The purpose of the meeting is to obtain public input on the project to date and the draft management strategies that have been developed. As the pathway to implementation of project recommendations, the management strategies are one of the most important results of the project. Your input will help to tailor these strategies to meet the needs of the Pine Creek Watershed. Please check back in January/February 2010 for more details on the upcoming public meeting.

NOVEMBER 2009 PROJECT UPDATES

The first round of public meetings was held in June 2009 to provide input and identify issues and concerns related to the study.  Using the information from the public meetings, public survey results, interviews with key watershed stakeholders, and the continued coordination with the plan’s study committee, draft management strategies and action plans are now being developed.  It is the study committee’s intent to hold a second public meeting in late January 2010 to once again request that the public attend and provide input on the content of the management strategies and action plans and to prioritize them in a manner that will benefit not only the natural elements, but also the social fabric of the watershed.  The meeting format will include an approximate 20 minute presentation of the watershed plan, management strategies, and action items.  Following the presentation, several workshop areas will be set up and the public will be invited to participate in a prioritization exercise and will discuss in small groups the strategies and action plans.

The meeting would likely last 1½ hours from about 6:30 until 8 PM.  Please check back next month for more details about the upcoming public meeting.

The public survey deadline has expired; we received 100 public surveys in total!  Thank you to everyone who participated!

The information gathered from the initial round of public meetings (held in June 2009), stakeholder interviews, and public surveys will be used to focus our fieldwork and as a guide for the goals and recommendations of the plan. This information will also be included as attachments to the final plan. Fieldwork will commence later this month.

Lastly, we are in the process of reviewing existing data and developing draft text for the project area characteristics and existing resources sections of the Plan.

AUGUST 2009 PROJECT UPDATES

As part of the public participation, the study committee has identified 25 key individuals within the watershed that are knowledgeable about the social, economic, and natural resources within the watershed.  These key people within the community include local business owners, local officials, non-profit organizations, recreational groups, community service organizations, etc.  These individuals were selected for their expertise in their field, knowledge of the watershed, and/or involvement in watershed activities.

Starting this month, the stakeholders will be contacted and asked to participate in a telephone interview to gain their insight on issues, constraints, and opportunities within the watershed.  The goal of these stakeholder interviews is to understand the local community’s needs and concerns. Ultimately, watershed research and public opinion will be combined in the plan to provide background information; implementation strategies to restore, maintain, or enhance the watershed; and a specific project development schedule to define priority projects.

Hard copies of the public survey are available to the general public in the lobbies of the following municipal buildings and libraries:  Bradford Woods, Etna, Franklin Park, Marshall, McCandless, O’Hara, Richland, Shaler, Shaler North Hills Library, Hampton Community Library, and Northland Public Library.  Project information and drop boxes for completed surveys are also provided at each location. If you prefer to mail-in your survey, please mail it before August 28th to:

Mackin Engineering Company
RIDC Park West
117 Industry Drive
Pittsburgh, PA 15275
ATTN: Jennifer Yeckel