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Whereas, Malletts Creek has been determined by the Washtenaw County Drain Commissioner to be a severely impacted urban waterway, characterized by contaminated storm water runoff, high phosphorus levels, flashy flows, sedimentation, flooding, bank erosion and habitat decline;
Whereas, the 11-square mile Malletts Creek watershed, which encompasses the southernmost part of the City, has an impervious level of 37 percent, a level high enough to result in its identification as a degraded urban stream;
Whereas, the Washtenaw County Drain Commissioner, the City of Ann Arbor, and Pittsfield Township have initiated the Malletts Creek Restoration Plan effort to develop a long-range, implementable and cost-effective plan to control flow, improve the water quality, and enhance the natural resource of Malletts Creek;
Whereas, the Malletts Creek Restoration Plan is anticipated to be completed by early 2000;
Resolved, the Ann Arbor City Planning Commission hereby supports the goals of the Malletts Creek restoration planning effort and encourages residents and property owners of land within the watershed to participate in the planning effort;
Further Resolved, that, in advance of the adoption of the Malletts Creek Restoration Plan, the Commission strongly encourages petitioners for any development proposals within the watershed to make special efforts to limit the impact of the development on Malletts Creek by incorporating the following "best management practices" into any proposal:
Minimize impervious surfaces by efficient parking and drive design, shared parking, parking deferral and use of multiple-story building design wherever possible;
Provide detention facilities which meet or exceed the Washtenaw County Drain Commissioner's Rules;
In the case of redevelopment sites, provide detention for all added impervious surfaces and, if feasible, as much of the existing development as possible;
Incorporate techniques from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality's "Best Management Practices Guidebook;"
Avoid placing detention facilities in the Malletts Creek floodplain; and
Further Resolved, the Planning Commission will not be supportive of variances from the storm water detention requirements of Chapter 63 for projects within the Malletts Creek watershed, unless City staff and the Washtenaw County Drain Commissioner have advised against detention for that particular location. |