“As cities reclaim their rivers, a rare opportunity is offered to repair past damage, to prevent new injury, and to create more sustainable communities,” conclude the authors of Ecological Riverfront Design, a new report presented by the American Planning Association (APA) and American Rivers. The report estimates that $500 million will be spent on riverfront revitalization in the first half of this decade. “To take advantage of this opportunity, we need to effectively integrate ecological considerations with economic and social goals along the nation’s urban rivers. [This report] promotes the view that we can achieve much greater environmental as well as social and economic success if urban riverfronts are designed with ecological principles in mind.”

Profiles and principles
Ecological Riverfront Design offers help to architects, planners, mayors, developers, investors, government officials, river advocates, and others who are planning or evaluating riverfront development efforts. The report pulls its lessons from more than 30 revitalization efforts across the country, including in-depth profiles of the Chicago River and Portland, Ore.’s Willamette River. Other case studies include Detroit’s Rouge River, New York City’s Bronx River, the Los Angeles River, and Chattanooga’s Tennessee River.

According to Betsy Otto, lead author of the report, “It makes good business sense for communities and developers to restore the river while rehabilitating properties along the bank. People spend time and money in attractive environments that emphasize natural beauty and wildlife.” The report presents a comprehensive set of recommendations for integrating pollution prevention and habitat improvements into riverfront redevelopment efforts. Design principles include:

• Buffering sensitive natural areas
• Using nonstructural alternatives to manage water resources
• Balancing recreational and public access goals with river protection
• Managing stormwater on site
• Reducing hardscapes.

Eternal vigilance
Although today’s urban rivers are considerably cleaner than they were 30 years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency warns that reduced enforcement of clean water laws and decreased sewage infrastructure investment could cause our rivers to return to 1970s sewage and odor levels by 2016. “Revitalization efforts won’t be successful if we don’t safeguard the water quality improvements that drew people back to their rivers in the first place,” Otto said. “Communities can help ensure success by reminding their state and federal representatives about their aspirations for an attractive, inviting river.”

Copies of Ecological Riverfront Design may be obtained through the APA Web site.

—Heather Livngston

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