KS Associates is leading the second Ohio Nature-Based Shoreline Training and Certification Program that it developed for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Office of Coastal Management. The program is the first of its kind in Ohio that teaches professionals how to design and construct living shorelines. Unlike hard structures, such as stone revetments and concrete seawalls, nature-based shorelines provide opportunities to restore natural structure and function to Lake Erie’s coastal areas.
This second program was developed in cooperation with Cleveland Metroparks, which contracted with KS Associates to design a nature-based shoreline at Wendy Park. Wendy Park is a 22-acre public greenspace located on Lake Erie at the mouth of the Cuyahoga River. The park is comprised largely of fill material with no shoreline buffers or stabilization. In four years, from 2017-2021, the park lost more than 10 feet of shoreline along a 400-foot stretch of the water’s edge, including an area near popular volleyball courts.
On Wednesday, March 20 and Thursday, March 21, 2024, Mark P. Cencer, P.E., KS Director of Coastal Engineering, led participants in two days of classroom training at the Cleveland Metroparks Watershed Stewardship Center in Parma, Ohio. Cencer served as project manager for the development of the training program, which included publishing a 46-page manual that is used a guide stone for designing and installation Ohio nature-based shorelines.
The field installation at Wendy Park will take place on May 14, 2024 (May 15 rain date). The installation will result in improvements that will protect the shore from erosion, improve water quality, and promote aquatic and terrestrial habitat.
In 2023, KS Coastal Engineers conducted a site inspection at Wendy Park and determined it was ideal location for the training program. They then designed a solution to improve the stability of the dynamic shoreline while mimicking natural shoreline habitats. The design will help to preserve nearshore water depths of one to three feet, restore the natural land-water interface, incorporate native material, increase opportunities for species diversity and productivity, improve water quality, and maintain coastal processes. KS Associates also led the permitting process, which included coordinating with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
The project is funded in part by an ODNR Office of Coastal Management Assistance Grant.
