In 2010, the City of Port Angeles, with SRFB funding, hired Waterfall Engineering to develop a design for Phase 3 of the
Valley Creek restoration. The restoration design improves a channelized and culverted portion of Valley Creek, located adjacent to and under Valley Street between 2nd St and 9th St. The improvements include 1500 feet of remeandered channel at the southern end of the project stream reach, removal of the steepest section of culvert between 5th St. and 6th St and replacing it with a 400 feet of meandering stream, installation of a new 135 foot long arch culvert segment to improve passage conditions at the culvert inlet, and installation of baffles to improve fishway passage in the remaining 1750 foot long culvert. The design was completed in 2011 and includes detailed drawings, a project manual with specifications, cost estimates, and complete permit application forms (JARPA, SEPA). The project is now construction ready.

The project includes fish passage improvements in the culvert and at the culvert inlet, connection with a constructed
wetland (built in conjunction with the 8th Street bridge replacement project), a wider riparian zone with new vegetation, increased stream length due to the new meander, and improved geomorphology due to installation of large woody debris and rock. These changes will also result in reduced maintenance costs associated with flooding, erosion and debris removal from the culvert trash rack. In 2016, Fish Passage Barrier Removal Board staff vetted the design and confirmed that there are no
total fish passage barriers downstream; specifically, an irregular section of the long culvert under Marine Drive is backwatered at high tide.

Completion of this project segment will result in a fish passable stream from the Valley Creek estuary south to the Highway
101 culvert (Valley Creek Restoration Phase 1) and beyond. Valley Creek Restoration Phase 2 improved instream and riparian habitat between the Highway 101 culvert and the Valley Creek Restoration Phase 3 reach.

The Valley Creek watershed was ranked as 14th priority watershed and the system priority is listed as Medium. Valley Creek is located in WRIA 18.