The public will have the opportunity to learn about plans for a habitat restoration project for Audubon Islands State Nature Preserve at an open house, Thursday, July 13 from 4:30 to 6 p.m., at the Maumee Branch Library, 501 River Road.
The 192-acre island complex in the Maumee River between Maumee and Perrysburg is a Metroparks Toledo property designated as a State Nature Preserve, with limited public access.
Metroparks received a $3.6 million Great Lakes Restoration Initiative grant to fund engineering, design, permitting and restoration construction on and near the island complex. Project planning support is provided by the Maumee Area of Concern Advisory Committee and Ohio EPA, along with the designbuild team of Verdantas and Mark Haynes Construction.
The restoration will focus on improving habitat for fish and small organisms that live on the river bottom. Plans will advance the preliminary designs prepared by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 2021-22.
The project will:
•Increase habitat types along the shoreline by installing stone shelves with engineered log jams and rock barrier reefs with stream bank plantings
•Deepen sections of a cove and incorporate additional woody habitat and other features
•Stabilize island banks, preventing further erosion and creating resilient features at the islands to withstand higher and more variable water flows.
Planning and permit submittal activities are scheduled to be finished in December. Construction work is planned to begin in 2024 once permits are received.
Additional information about the restoration is available at metroparkstoledo com/island.
