By Brian Schraum-The Courier-Herald
It was a clear, 65-degree day for the 20 residents and city officials who toured the Fennel Creek corridor June 30.
Marian Betzer of the Fennel Creek Preservation Group led the two-and-a-half hour tour through parts of Bonney Lake and unincorporated Pierce County. Betzer's group wants to raise awareness about development impacting the watershed.
“The more you learn, the more you realize it really is a greenway through Bonney Lake,” Betzer said.
The tour began along Kelly Lake Road to Sumner-Buckley Highway. Pierce County will be adding three new box culverts under the roadway there to ease flooding from the creek. Crews are scheduled to begin work this summer.
Betzer drove the group along Angeline Road to Victor Falls, where Fennel Creek drops more than 100 feet near Ken Love's property.
The tour continued to the top of the Sky Island community, overlooking nearby developments. Betzer also stopped at the Garden Meadows, Copperfield Estates and Willow Brook subdivisions.
]The Bonney Lake Park Board originally requested the tour. Board members Laurie Carter and Dan Totten participated, as did City Councilman Dave King. Members of the Foothills Rails-to-Trails Coalition were also along for the tour.
Fennel Creek flows eight miles from its headwaters near Buckley, criss-crosses state Route 410 and empties into the Puyallup River. It is part of the larger Mid-Puyallup Basin. The creek is used for spawning by several species of salmon.
Bonney Lake Community Services Director Gary Leaf said he suggested the board tour Fennel Creek, because the corridor is part of the city's park plan.
“The city has placed preservation of Fennel Creek as a high priority,” Leaf said. “It's a nice, natural area going right through the heart of Bonney Lake.”
