1997 AGN JUN 17 I26 - Laserfiche WebLink

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May 20, 1997 Honorable Deirdre Bennett Page 2 centerline of Barton Road. It was explained to me that the Corps indicated that was the amount of distance needed to make the transition from the area under the bridge to a natural channel. To minimize the amount of concrete to an absolute minimum, I have requested that the Army Corps examine exactly what is needed to make the transition and to reduce the concrete to that distance. When I receive that information, I will transmit it on to you. On a philosophical point, I have been asked by several of my friends in the Conservancy about the strength of Amy personal commitment to a soft bottom channel and greenway in the area of Reach 3B. While I trust that my actions speak more positively than words alone, I want to reiterate that I believe San Timoteo Creek in the area of the canyon is an incredible asset now and will be in the future. I wish that it was within my personal discretion to simply appropriate the funds needed to protect the natural values of this area and to develop the greenway we are mutually working towards. I am committed to continue working with each of you and anyone else who will join us in seeking the best designed greenway we can develop together with the funds to make it happen. I also want to add one personal note of thank you to each one of you has given so much of your time, energy and means in this very important task. Now that the initial steps we set out in Washington have been almost completed, we have further actions we agreed needed to follow: the finalization of the alternative design and the search for funds to implement that design. I anticipate that our contacts will increase over the next few weeks and months. I, therefore, intend to keep in contact with you by periodic status letters and meetings with our ad hoc group (which group may have to be expanded to keep up with the tasks we assign ourselves). On May 2, we began the process of distributing some tasks as follows: • The Washington D.C. ad hoc group will focus on reaching consensus on a final design for Reach 3B by August 1, 1997, in order to allow the Army Corps to begin design work and to more exactly calculate costs. • The Conservancy is working on a Greenway workshop which may lead to further ideas on the above. I would appreciate being kept informed on that event. Although my schedule is tight, want to be as involved in as many activities as possible on the project. • All potential funding sources that we know about now should be given to my office as soon as possible but no later than June 1, 1997. 1 appreciate receiving some of that information to date which we are currently reviewing and using to create a data bank for future reference. If we find other funding sources later, we will still add them, but we do not want to delay the process. At this time, there appear to be the following general categories of where we may expect to successfully find funding or other assistance on the greenway project: