THERE ARE 2 WETLAND PROJECTS UNDER WAY: THE CULLEN BAY WETLANDS AND THE GRASSY ISLAND WETLANDS.
The “Cullen Bay” wetland will be constructed in the Maumee Bay. The location is referred to as Cullen Bay because it was isolated from the rest of the bay when Grassy Island was built; however, is still part of the Maumee Bay.
The “Grassy Island” wetland will be built in the Maumee Bay along the north side of the Cullen Park Causeway. It will be separated from Grassy Island by a boat channel. It will also be built directly in front of waterfront homes, converting waterfront views into dike front views. It should also be noted that the Maumee Bay is, in fact, part of Lake Erie.
BOTH WILL BE SURROUNDED BY HIGH ROCK WALLS.
The Cullen Bay and Grassy Island wetlands will be enclosed by rock-wall dikes to keep debris out of the wetlands and to prevent them from getting washed out. The final elevation has not been released yet. An elevation of 579 feet has been recommended and is being evaluated. At this elevation the top of the dikes will fluctuate between 6 and 8.5 feet above the water line during typical hi/low water cycles. Based on historical lake levels, there are times when it may be as high as 9.5 feet or as low as 5.5 feet above the water line. The designs call for the water to flow in and out of the wetlands through several 5′ x 5′ box culverts installed through the dike.
Walking will be permitted on top of the dikes, and portages are supposed to be installed so that kayaks and canoes can be transported over the top of the dike in case anyone wants to paddle around inside it.
The dike walls were recently added to both wetland designs after a third party confirmed what the public has been saying all along, that the wetlands, as they were initially described to the public, would: 1) be impossible to maintain and 2) never stand up the power of the waves that occur during storms with high northeasterly winds.
CULLEN BAY WETLAND:
The Cullen Bay wetland design is almost finalized and the permitting process will begin soon. This wetland will be built off Bayview Park and will jut out into the river. This will redirect the flow of the Maumee River away from the Cut between Grassy Island and the Causeway and divert it back towards the center of the river.
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GRASSY ISLAND WETLAND:
The study phase of the Grassy Island Wetland site has finished and it has moved on to the design phase. At the first public meeting the public was told the hydrodynamic studies would be made available to the public before the project progressed past the study phase. When studies were not voluntarily produced after numerous requests, a Freedom of Information Act request was sent to the Port Authority asking for them. The Port’s attorney responded that it did not have any studies to provide.
The design phase is still in development and is ongoing. Current design drafts are preliminary and subject to change. With that in mind, the current design of the Grassy Island Wetland is this:
The channel between the wetland and Grassy Island is approximately 200 feet wide. Click here to see how boating will be negatively impacted by this wetland design.
This is a picture of both wetlands superimposed over the existing landscape
Notice how the Cullen Bay Wetland fills the view from Cullen Park, replacing almost all of it with the high diked wall of the wetland. Also notice how the Grassy Island Wetland affects the line of sight of the homes close to the Cullen Park Causeway, replacing the lake front views with dike front views.
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