The City of Wichita is turning former farmland in an urban area into a wetlands preserve and park that will be open for public enjoyment. The $1.7 million project, built around a lake locally known as Cadillac Lake, will eventually include a circular boardwalk path through the 56-acre site. GSI Engineering has been assisting in the project from early development stages.
Cadillac Lake and the Pracht Wetlands Park includes significant wetland and open water areas. While the previous owners had used it for waterfowl hunting purposes, the City of Wichita will be preserving the site as part of a permitting decision from commercial development in the area.
Plans to develop the Pracht Wetlands Park were initiated in 2014 with GSI completing wetland delineation, meeting with the development company planning the project to discuss the wetland impact, alternative plans to minimize and avoid impact, and potential for retaining existing wetland and waters of the US.
GSI also worked with the developer during negotiations with the City of Wichita to arrange transfer of the wetland areas to the park department for use as an urban wetland park area and attended meetings with the City of Wichita, U.S. Corps of Engineers, various stakeholder groups including Audubon Society, Sierra Club, and Lower Arkansas River Watershed Restoration and Protection (WRAPS) group to develop project support.
As the project moved forward, GSI also assisted with the development of the Section 404 Permit Application, with permit approval granted in 2015 and project development beginning in 2016. GSI currently is providing wetland mitigation monitoring services for the City of Wichita throughout the 5 year monitoring period.
In order to help fund the full extent of the project, the City of Wichita recently worked with Gov. Colyer and the State House to pass a new bill allowing for the sale of Wichita flag license plates, an initiative called Plates for Parks. Read more about the Pracht Wetlands Park and Plates for Parks in the Wichita Eagle article.