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NEW HOUSING INCLUDES CREEK PROJECT (July 17, 2003)
Medford Mail Tribune -- Riverwalk, near Ashland’s North Mountain Park, will feature a connection to the Bear Creek Greenway
By Troy Heie

ASHLAND — Homes will rise near North Mountain Park at a development that also includes a public-private partnership to protect Bear Creek.

Riverwalk, a 62-lot subdivision, is the brainchild of developers Evan Archerd, Hal Dresner, Russ Dale and Steve Morgan.

The partners say the new patch of homes goes far beyond a typical development, particularly because a planned extension of the Bear Creek Greenway will help preserve sensitive ecology near the waterway.

"We’re developers, but we’re also longtime local residents," Dale said. "We have a pride and a stake in this community. We want to see it grow and flourish, but not at the cost of becoming another crowded metropolis."

The homes will be sited on 16 acres near Hersey Street and North Mountain Avenue, across from the city’s popular North Mountain Park.

Eight of the first phase’s 26 lots remain available, priced at $251,000 to $349,000, Dale said on Monday. Phase two homes will be available for purchase in a couple of weeks, priced "in the $300s to $400s." Beyond the second phase, 10 "choice" lots priced at $500,000 and up will feature custom-built homes facing the park, Dale said.

Lithia Realty and Gateway Realty are the developers’ agents.

Riverwalk partners worked with city staff on preserving the environmental integrity of nearby Bear Creek. They donated six acres to the city to help complete a portion of the greenway running along Bear Creek toward Oak Street.

"This is the missing link," Dale said.

The Riverwalk greenway project will eventually link up with another portion of the bike and pedestrian path that is being improved using grant money secured by the Ashland Parks and Recreation Department and the Ashland Woodlands & Trails Association.

"From the soccer/baseball park you will now be able to enter the trail system that parallels Bear Creek and will ultimately hook up with the association’s work" near Oak Street, Dale said.

"This is going to complete a huge chunk of that linkage," he said. "This is one of the biggest incomplete chunks."

The developers will cover the tab for greenway extension work near Riverwalk, Dale said.

Riverwalk also will include a new wetlands park in one of the city’s seven drainages. Water flowing into 420 acres in the area will be cleaned by grease and sediment traps before pooling in settling ponds near the development. Eventually, the water will make its way into Bear Creek.

Dale said taking the extra environmental steps was "a high priority" for developers.

"We’re doing it to help raise the bar and standards for other developers," he said.

Construction at Riverwalk calls for 26 homes to be completed by early fall. Maintenance of the creek and construction of the wetlands park has already begun. The trail connection and bike paths should be available by spring 2004.

Reach Troy Heie at 776-4477 or e-mail news@mailtribune.com

Mail Tribune team editor Scott Smith contributed to this report.

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