Official Green Light on Another Important Improvement

A good perspective of the "before" status
(dare I say, click to enlarge)

Consider this a classic "before" photo: lots of browns and grays, poor lighting, lots of erosion, plenty of debris, and a hodgepodge of makeshift adaptations and management accessories. Except for the most familiar, it seems to exemplify general disarray.

While it has never been a thing of beauty (at least during our tenure on the property), our "West Pump" and the associated infrastructure has served the site well for over 50 years. I refer to this area as the "primary plumbing" for the West Marsh in that it is the direct link between Sandusky Bay and nearly 200 acres of "hemi marsh" -- the mix of emergent vegetation [growing out of the water], submerged vegetation [growing under the water], and open water that we are working hard to improve on the inside of our bayfront dike.

This is a specific area that I've written on before (More Really Exciting News -- 9/29/17, and Inside Priorities -- 12/20/17), but the milestone reached today is that we officially received our Section 404 Permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This is noteworthy not only because it is the culmination of months of preparation and communication, but it is also critical because it officially permits us to proceed with our improvement project in conjunction with the ODNR Office of Coastal Management and the Erie Soil & Water Conservation District. We hope to have an RFP (request for proposal) out by mid-next month so that we can select a contractor and complete the project this summer. It will be another huge win for the project.