Last update: 08/25/2009

Plans for Capitol Lake

The purpose of the Capitol Lake Alternatives Analysis is to addresses Objective #2 of the Capitol Lake Adaptive Management Plan (CLAMP) 10-Year Plan. The objective calls for the CLAMP steering committee to “complete an estuary feasibility study to determine a long-range management decision.”
The Alternatives Analysis is an expanded executive summary of many technical reports. It collects and compares the scientific data based upon various future scenarios. Four alternatives were compared in this report, which include the following:

  • Status Quo – Do not dredge the lake and continue current dam operations, weed control and other maintenance procedures.
  • Managed Lake – Conduct a large initial dredge to restore the depth of the lake and then periodically dredge the new sediment coming down the river.
  • Estuary – Restore tidal action by dredging sediment; removing the dam and constructing a new 5th Avenue Bridge.
  • Dual Basin Estuary – Same as the Estuary alternative, but with a barrier dividing the north part of the lake into a saltwater reflecting pool adjacent to Heritage Park, and an estuary adjacent to Deschutes Parkway.

Public comments on the on the Public Review Draft are important. Comments will be collected, provided to the CLAMP steering committee, and will be attached to the Capitol Lake Alternatives Analysis – Final Report.