National Capital Region FY 2001 Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program Concept

National Capital Region 

FY 2001 Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program Concept

1.  Background:  The National Capital Region (NCR) proposes to create a formal Rivers, Trails & Conservation Assistance Program in FY 2001.  The Assistant Regional Director, Partnerships Program, will manage the Program.  The goal of the Partnerships Program is "to find ways to use partnerships to help NPS park and program managers, and community leaders meet National, State and local goals and objectives within the Potomac River watershed".

NCR's interest in working with Headquarters and the Northeast Region to develop an RTCA Program builds on the good work of the Philadelphia Support Office, the support of NCR Superintendents, and the long tradition of river and trail work in this office. The work that Don Briggs, Ursula Lemanski, Robert Potter, Sherry Peck, Wink Hastings, Joe DiBello, and others have done to advance the RTCA Program within NCR provides a wonderful foundation for a new program.

Since March 2000 there have been ongoing discussions with the Northeast Region and Headquarters to coordinate this proposal with ongoing and new activities proposed by Philadelphia Support Office (PHSO).  A series of coordination mechanisms are being examined to insure that NCR activities will be compatible with the Northeast Region.  A Program Agreement will be used to summarize our collaboration strategy between the Regional Offices.

2.  Benefits:  Specifically, the creation of a RTCA Program in NCR will:

• Help NPS, State, and community leaders to protect, conserve, restore, interpret and enjoy natural, cultural and recreational values of national importance. 
• Provide these important protection, advocacy, partnership, stewardship, and recreation services in close proximity to population centers, including urban and under served areas.
• Add prominence and on-the-ground visibility to this work by establishing an active presence in the Nation's Capital.  
• Reaffirm, and institutionalize, the importance of this work within NPS by creating another Regional Office program.

3.  Commitments:  With funding support from NPS Washington NCR is prepared to make a commitment to provide the following three full-time positions to this program:

• a Program Leader
• a Project Manager
• a Student Fellow as part of the RTCA Cultural Diversity effort

In addition, NCR anticipates providing management time from the Regional Director's office, as necessary, to successfully launch this program.

As part of the NCR commitment these employees will be located at the Friend's of the Potomac, Potomac River Center, at 1730 K St. NW in Washington, DC.  NCR has been provided this space by the General Services Administration and shares it with the Friends of the Potomac.  The Friends is a non-profit organization and one of NCR's Potomac River partnership organizations.

The request for FY 2001 funding is to support:

• Initial start-up efforts for a RTCA Program
• Completion of specific ongoing projects in this region
• New projects
• Consultations

4.  Initial Start-Up Efforts:  NCR will hire a Program Leader, Project Manager, and Student Fellow, establish the new office, providing staff orientation training, cover overhead, and notify various partners of the new RTCA Program.  Initially the staff will develop an annual work plan, a program agreement with PHSO, indicators of success, and specific project proposals for FY 2001.  Ongoing and new project and consultation assistance will be provided to public and private partners. 

5.  FY 2001 Preliminary Projects: NCR will develop initial project proposals consistent with established RTCA Goals and guidelines.  Initial priority project proposals include activities within the following areas:

Northeast Region Project Coordination: NCR staff will work with PHSO on the following projects to coordinate activities of common interest:

• African American Heritage Trail
• Chesapeake Bay Water Trails Action Agenda
• Potomac River Land Conservation Strategy
• Washington, D.C. Green Space Atlas

National Capital Region Projects: NCR staff anticipates providing assistance on the following ongoing NPS efforts in FY 2001:

a.  African American Heritage Link: NCR will continue to partner with the International Network to Freedom Association to further develop the "African American Heritage Link to the Potomac River".  FY 2001 activities will include revising the existing Guide to African American heritage; assisting with the annual Pearl Affair celebration; and developing an educational guide, "Just Beyond the River".  Private sector funding will be sought to match NPS commitments.

b.  Delivery of Services Assessment: NCR will conduct an evaluation of existing RTCA technical and financial assistance approaches. The purpose of the evaluation is to identify the most effective way to provide community-specific RTCA services within NCR in the future.  FY 2001 research will focus on an assessment of past NPS services, other "circuit rider" service programs, NCR community needs, and other government or private sector programs that could be used to cost-share RTCA staff positions in the future.  A strategy for NCR will be prepared for the 2002.  Confirmed partners include the Interstate Commission for the Potomac River Basin and Canaan Valley Institute.

c. Community Partner Workshops: NCR will continue to assist the Friends of the Potomac and other government agencies and private groups to hold community-initiated partner workshops.  The Workshops are intended to help local governments help themselves to conserve, protect, revitalize, restore, interpret, and enjoy the natural, cultural and recreational values and functions of the Potomac River watershed.  Requests for assistance include:

• Hunting Creek, VA
• Four Mile Run, VA
• Western Maryland
• Indian Head, MD
• Petersburg, WV
• Various community parks, DC

d. Countryside Stewardship Exchange: NCR will continue to implement, at the regional level, the existing agreement between NPS and the Glynwood Center to provide communities services through the Countryside Stewardship Exchange.  FY 2001 activities will include partnering with the Center, EPA's Office of International Activities, the Alliance for Chesapeake Bay and others to design and implement a home and away exchange with Germany, Denmark and the United Kingdom. NPS contributions to the exchange will be matched by other partners.

e.  Groundwork: NCR will work with NPS-Boston to consider starting a Groundwork Program within the District of Columbia.  FY 2001 activities will include replicating the NPS-Boston Groundwork model in NCR, selecting and organizing a community, forming a steering committee, creating a business plan, making the Groundwork organization operational, and securing funds from other public agencies and the private sector for implementation.

1. Green Infrastructure Community Case Studies:

NCR will continue to implement "Green Infrastructure" recommendations developed as part of the President's Council for Sustainable Development.  Staff will work in collaboration with The Conservation Fund, Sheperd College, U.S. EPA's Office of International Activities, and the Alliance for Sustainable Communities, to document successful community-based green infrastructure efforts within the Washington, DC metropolitan region.  

The case study report will describe the foundations for Green Infrastructure in Washington; current efforts including parks, greenways, urban gardens, riparian buffers, habitat plans, etc.; and an assessment of accomplishments, current gaps and recommendations for moving a regional Green Infrastructure effort forward.  A presentation and a pre-release report are planned for the 2001 Mid-Atlantic Conference on Greenways, Blueways and Green Infrastructure.

1. Partners for Progress on the Potomac:  NCR and

the American Recreation Coalition, in cooperation with the Friends of the Potomac, have begun to establish a Potomac River coalition to create opportunities for existing groups to come together when it makes sense to coordinate their efforts and benefit from potential synergy.

The coalition will serve as a unifying and organizing approach for dialogue, information and skill sharing, awareness and action.

The first priority of the coalition is to develop a Potomac River web-site to provide the public with information on existing government and private sector organizations. Each government or organizations Potomac River activities will be summarized to describe who they are and what they are doing to manage the river.  FY 2001 activities include developing a standard list of questions, contacting and researching each organization, designing a web-site, and entering the data.  Private financial assistance for the web-site is anticipated.

g.  Potomac Heritage Tourism Initiative: NCR staff will continue to assist the Potomac Heritage Partnership, and more than 200 local government and private sector organizations, to coordinate heritage tourism efforts within the Potomac River watershed.  FY 2001 activities include helping to design a Potomac Heritage Tourism Summit; strategic planning; preparation of a report on the ongoing survey and local activity research; and workshops to help communities advance local initiatives.

h.  Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail Vision: NCR staff will provide assistance to a coalition of public agencies and private groups to help develop a vision for a Comprehensive Management Plan for the PHNST.  The effort will examine how the various pieces of the trail fit together; where do people go for services; how the managers function; and its relationship to other NPS initiatives (i.e. Gateways & Water Trails, Network to Freedom, NCR Park Interpretive Strategy, etc.).  FY 2001 assistance will include helping with a workshop to develop an outline for the Comprehensive Management Plan.

i.  Consultations:  NCR staff will respond to requests for technical and information assistance.

6.  Information:  For additional information please contact Glenn Eugster, Assistant Regional Director, Partnerships Program, National Capital Region, 1100 Ohio Drive, SW, Washington, DC 20242

(202) 619-7492 phone; (202) 619-7220 fax; glenn_eugster@nps.gov e-mail