Title
2025 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant (Ordinance S-51615) - District 8
Description
Request to authorize the City Manager, or his designee, to apply for, accept and, if awarded, enter into agreements for disbursement of funding from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) through the 2025 Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration grant. Further request to authorize the City Treasurer to accept, and the City Controller to disburse, all funds related to this item. The total grant funds applied for will not exceed $60,000. There is no impact to the General Fund, as the City’s 75 percent local match requirement will be met with volunteer hours by the project partners as allowable by the grant.
Report
Summary
The Parks and Recreation Department is seeking authority to apply for a 2025 Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant with funding provided through the NFWF. This award will be used to construct a shade structure at the Transformation Site, a one-acre vacant parcel adjacent to the southern bank of the Rio Salado near the new Central Avenue light rail station at Pioneer Street. The location and type of structure will be consistent with the site’s final masterplan and installed while final construction documents for the site are underway.
A portion of the grant funds will also be used to conduct outdoor environmental and habitat restoration activities. Construction of a shade structure will allow environmental and habitat restoration activities to occur on the river corridor itself, particularly in the summer months, when activities are moved indoors to the Audubon Center because of extreme heat.
Applications for the 2025 NFWF Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant are currently open and are due by January 30, 2025. Award notification will occur August 2025 and projects should be completed within 24-48 months.
Grant eligibility criteria include a requirement for five partners dedicated to this project. The Parks and Recreation Department is in the process of identifying potential partners for this grant.
The Transformation Site falls under the City’s broader Rio Reimagined initiative, intended to improve the quality of life in neighborhoods surrounding the 20-mile ecological corridor of the Rio Salado through habitat restoration and new connections for Phoenix residents to safely access and experience the Rio Salado as a cultural and environmentally rich destination.
Financial Impact
There is no impact to the General Fund. This is a reimbursement grant. The total grant funds applied for will not exceed $60,000. The City’s 75 percent match requirement will be satisfied with volunteer hours.
Location
Rio Salado Habitat Restoration Area - 2439 South Central Ave, Phoenix, 85004
Council District: 8
Department
Responsible Department
This item is submitted by Deputy City Manager John Chan and the Parks and Recreation Department.