(From left) are Bill Noland and Irene Haske, Fairfax County; Edythe Kelleher and Howard Springsteen, Vienna Town Council; Cathy Salgado, Vienna Parks and Recreation; Rebecca Greenberg, Vienna Public Works; Sharon Bulova, chairman, Fairfax County Board of Supervisors; Justin Pistore, Fairfax County; and John Muse, president, Community Appearance Alliance of Northern Virginia.
The Community Appearance Alliance of Northern Virginia (CAA) last week honored the Wolftrap Creek restoration project. Town of Vienna and Fairfax County representatives accepted an award recognizing the two entities’ partnership that transformed a section of Wolftrap Creek in Vienna’s Wildwood Park.
Because of it, the creek was changed from a deeply incised channel with eroding banks to an environmental benefit for people and animals. The work restored more than 2,500 feet of the Creek by reshaping the stream banks to a gentle slope and planting vegetation.
This vegetation not only provides a habitat for animals, but also helps stabilize the stream banks and filter pollutants from the stormwater runoff. After the work was completed, Wildwood Park re-opened in October 2013. The project was a joint effort between the Town of Vienna Public Works and Parks and Recreation Departments and the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services.
The goals were to improve water quality and restore the ecology of the stream and riparian habitat. This project also enhanced recreational and educational opportunities for stream and park visitors. It was honored last Friday, March 14, during an awards program hosted by the Northern Virginia Association of Realtors in Fairfax.