City works to keep trail water feature

Cyclists and hikers love the Peterson Ridge Trail at the south end of town. Trail advocates are hoping to preserve its character as a piping project takes away an open irrigation canal.

As of last Thursday's Sisters City Council workshop, a proposed water feature to replace the "Little Bridge," where the Peterson Ridge Trail (PRT) crosses the Uncle John ditch, is still in the city's plan.

The Three Sisters Irrigation District (TSID) has proposed a project to pipe the ditch that runs from just outside the Sisters city limits to the south, crossing the Peterson Ridge Trail twice as it tracks north to end up at the Lazy Z property along Highway 20. There will be no cost to the city for the piping portion of this project, even though the city is one of the six patrons/owners of the ditch and its water, which is managed by TSID. At no charge, the city will also gain pressurized water and 600 feet of mainline pipe to serve the city property.

By piping the water in the ditch, Black Rock consulting estimates that there will be a 22 percent savings in water by avoiding losses due to evaporation and seepage into the ground. All of the recovered water will be put into Whychus Creek (estimated to be 2.6 cubic feet per second, or cfs).

An earlier TSID piping project eliminated the "Big Bridge" crossing on the PRT a quarter of a mile to the south. At the joint city council/county commissioners meeting on June 7, FivePine owner Bill Willitts made an impassioned plea to somehow keep the only remaining water feature on the PRT intact. Willitts cited the burgeoning tourist potential of the PRT as one of the biggest draws in Sisters.

Since the June 23 workshop, City Manager Eileen Stein and her staff have been working with the Forest Service and other involved parties to come up with a plan and an estimated cost to allow the piping project to go forward and still maintain a water feature for the PRT.

The plan that seems to be gaining the most traction is one suggested by Director of Public Works Paul Bertagna. Since the TSID easement extends to 50 feet on either side of the existing ditch, Bertagna is suggesting that TSID bury their pipe alongside the existing ditch for 100 to 200 feet at the Little Bridge site. The city would then add a solar-powered pump and float system to flow water in the existing ditch with little to no visual change to what is in place presently.

TSID has already agreed to provide a tap on the pipe at no charge wherever the city expects to need it to allow for a water feature, as long as the modification is done at the time of the piping project.

Councilors agreed that Stein will draw up an agreement between the city and TSID to go forward with the piping project as planned, with the proper allowances made for a water feature to be determined "in the near future."

The city in turn will move ahead with the discussions with the Forest Service and the various water conservancy agencies to determine if Bertagna's plan or something similar can be included at a later date. It is anticipated that environmental impact statements, liability, water mitigation and financial issues will take "some additional time" to work out.

To lock-in the funding for this $1.3 million project before it goes away, TSID Manager Marc Thalacker feels the need to move quickly. Thalacker is looking for a go-ahead from the city and the other five patrons on the main piping project by the first week in August.