Niver Creek Tributary M Restoration Thornton, Colorado

After upstream development caused degradation within the stream corridor, the restoration of a tributary to Niver Creek (Tributary M) addressed an ongoing concern of system stabilityin order to protect public safety, nearby infrastructure, and local ecology. Leading the design, Otak collaborated closely with the City of Thornton, the Mile High Flood District (MHFD), and Stream Landscape Architecture + Planning in developing a design that would stabilize the area, reconnect the channel to it’s floodplain, and maintain connection to the retention area providing flood control for the community.

Stream Restoration to Preserve Resources and Public Safety

The restoration of Niver Creek Tributary M reestablishes the natural system as a healthy, high-functioning stream while also creating an opportunity to better utilize the area for the community in combination with enhancements to the Niver Creek Open Space. Reconnecting to its floodplain and realigning segments where necessary, the design allows the stream to spread out and slow down during high flows, reducing erosion and supporting a thriving riparian corridor. Meeting a key priority in preserving mature riparian trees perched along eroded banks, the design team quickly adapted an original restoration plan. That update would modify the floodplain grading while also balancing considerations such as backwater effects of a downstream earthen dam, permitting constraints, underlying geology, proposed bank heights, revegetation areas, and estimated construction costs. As part of this restoration process, a range of alternatives with geomorphic, hydraulic, and cost-benefit analysis produced an ultimate restoration project that realigned the channel around critical utility infrastructure, preserved mature vegetation, and reconnected the channel to its historical floodplain. These improvements represent an example of how flood mitigation can leverage its surrounding context to provide nature-based solutions also foster safe, recreational opportunities for the regional community.