The Brown’s Creek Watershed District Board will hold a special board meeting on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 at 2-6 p.m. in-person at the Stillwater Public Library (Margaret Rivers Room B, 224 3rd St N, Stillwater).
BCWD is beginning its update of the ten-year management plan that guides all implementation activities in the watershed district. We will be holding a kick-off meeting in two parts.
- 2-4pm will be a more formal meeting with technical presentations of the current plan content, accomplishments, and issues that have been identified to update from the initial plan notification process.
- 4-6pm open house that will also include the general public. You are all welcome and encouraged to participate in some one-on-one conversation and light refreshments.
You are invited to an open house on July 9th from 4-6pm at the Stillwater Library (Margaret Rivers B room) for some light refreshments, celebrate some of the accomplishments we have made together over the past ten years, and plan how we can work together over the next ten years. As a community partner, we look to you to help set the priorities for the watershed district’s programs and projects. Please invite others that you think would also be interested in attending! An invitation has been attached for your use. We would love to know if you plan to make it (RSVP to Cameron Blake at cblake@mnwcd.org), but stopping in is just fine too!
We have other ways to continue conversation and participation as well:
- Take a survey to help us know what community partners know about water resources to help us better fit our programs and gage long-term success. This takes 5-10 minutes.
- Participate in our citizens advisory committee (CAC), which meets second Mondays of even months 6-8pm at the Stillwater Library or virtually (hybrid meeting style to fit your time or communication preferences). You can find out more about how to join our CAC, events and programs they are leading, and past/future agendas. These meetings are always open to the public. You will be welcomed warmly. Come participate and see if committee membership is right for you.
- Sign up for a free site visit for your home or business to discuss opportunities for watershed stewardship with things like native vegetation plantings, ways to capture and reuse rainwater and snowmelt in rain barrels, rain gardens or other features, water conservation opportunities, and more. These initial site visits are done in partnership with the Washington Conservation District. Some projects may be eligible for a stewardship grant with the Brown’s Creek Watershed District.
- Attend an event for hands-on, interactive fun and learning. Learn from other local stewards. Events added regularly to our district calendar. Next up:
- July 9th 4-6pm– Public Open House
- July 24th 6:30-7:30pm – Ever hear about “low mow” lawns? Curious about what that would look like and how hard it would be to plant and maintain? Come meet our BCWD Board President, Klay Eckles as he opens his yard to show what he has learned. (led by the citizen advisory committee)
- August 21st 6:30-7:30 – Come tour the Brown’s Creek stream restoration project that began in June. Learn what we are doing and how this is going to improve Brown’s Creek. We will be looking for volunteers for planting native vegetation in spring 2025. (led by the citizen advisory committee)
- September 21st 10am-1pm – It’s time to celebrate this amazing watershed! Join BCWD and Sustainable Stillwater and MANY OTHERS to learn what makes this watershed great for all creatures big and small. Tons of hands on activities, raptor demonstrations, live music, free ice cream. Bring the whole family and your neighbor’s whole family too! Want to participate in running the event – contact Cameron Blake at cblake@mnwcd.org to see how you or your group can help! (led by the citizen advisory committee)
- October 5th 10am-noon – Winter in Minnesota usually means ice and snow, and often salt. Learn how our lakes and streams are impacted by salts and what we can do to prevent it. Long Lake in Stillwater has already been impaired by salts, but there is a lot we can do to prevent it from getting worse. Come learn what salts do to our watershed.
- Request a presentation to your group (homeowners association, club, business community, youth group, environmental group, church, a group of neighbors, or anyone else that would be interested). Contact administrator Karen Kill to discuss potential topics at kill@mnwcd.org
- Adopt-a-drain – volunteer to keep the catch basins by your home swept clean of salt, sand, and leaves all year round. These small actions add up to big water quality improvements.
- Interested in estate planning and land conservation – we would love to talk to you about that as well!
- Have a group of volunteers that are interested in vegetation restoration, a project, or program – let us know!