The project site is located on the left bank of the lower Cedar River between the Cedar River and State Route (SR) 169 (Renton-Maple Valley Highway), from River Mile (RM) 13.1 to 13.5 on King County owned property. The Cedar River at the Rutledge Johnson Project is a single-thread, meandering reach with a confining levee and revetment structure along the left bank and a recently constructed levee setback and floodplain reconnection project, the Jan Road Levee Setback Project, on the right bank. An existing side channel and connecting drainages form a backwater with a single connection to the Cedar River at the downstream end of the project site near RM 13.175. The Cedar River is disconnected from the upstream side channel inlet (approximately RM 13.45) by the Rutledge Johnson flood protection facility. Juvenile salmonid habitat is largely confined to the mainstem river and right bank constructed side channel through the project area, limiting rearing and refuge for Chinook and other species compared to historic conditions. King County purchased 16 acres of residential land at the Project site and adjacent to the site. After acquiring the parcels, King County completed demolition of existing structures and utilities in 2012 and 2018, planted native riparian vegetation, and has been working to remove invasive vegetation and noxious weeds. Of the total mapped length of the Rutledge Johnson Facility, the lower 650 lineal feet is within the project area. Similarly, the County also purchased and removed structures and utilities from the parcel that includes the upper-most 210 feet of the Rutledge Johnson Facility. One intermediate private property between the County owned parcels remains, which includes approximately 220 feet of the Rutledge Johnson Facility. Several occupied residential buildings, used as rental homes, remain on the intervening private property. The Project is proposed on the county-owned property. The future restoration project will reconnect up to 16 acres of the Cedar River floodplain and remove approximately 600 feet of the Rutledge Johnson levee, with the goal of restoring riverine processes that benefit Chinook and other salmon populations. Design focused on improving in-stream and off-channel salmon habitat by increasing channel complexity, creating more diverse flow conditions, and facilitating more direct connections to floodplain habitats. At the 30% stage of design, a qualitative assessment of aquatic habitat was incorporated into project analysis and design. Habitat mapping and baseline monitoring of aquatic habitat conditions will be included in the Monitoring and Maintenance Plan and incorporated into later stages of design. Key aspects of aquatic habitat in the existing conditions of the project area include the following: • There is limited access to off-channel habitat through the project reach under existing conditions on the left bank. • Low velocity edge habitat (<1.5 feet/second), which is critical for juvenile salmonid rearing, is limited through the project reach. • The project reach lacks large wood. • Beaver activity has been observed and beavers are known to inhabit the nearby Taylor Creek. • The mainstem river through the project reach is partially constrained by levees and subject to high flows and scour during floods, which can impact salmon redds (nests). The project has been designed to address these limiting factors. Project effectiveness will be monitored for 10 years following construction which will be detailed in the Monitoring and Maintenance Plan. It is expected that outcomes will include: • Increased access points to off-channel habitat at varying flow stages. • Off-channel habitat within preferred depth range for juvenile salmonids. • Increase in low velocity habitat over existing conditions. • 150 pieces of large wood installed; wood accumulation expected over time. More detailed outcome goals will be included in the Monitoring and Maintenance Plan, which is currently under development for inclusion in the Basis of Design report at the 60% design stage. During the Alternatives Analysis Process, project elements were assembled into distinct project alternatives with differing means of achieving project objectives. All project alternatives applied a process-based design philosophy, recognizing that absent human constraints, fluvial systems are dynamic and responsible for topography, vegetation, and hydraulic complexity that produces and maintains the complex habitat that salmonids at various life stages depend on. Plan views of each of the alternatives considered are shown in Figures 3, 4 and 5 of the Alternatives Analysis Report, included in the attached 30% Basis of Design Report. A side-by-side comparison of alternative elements are presented in Table 1 of the report. Alternative evaluation criteria were developed considering project objectives that best captured the variability and unique aspects between the three alternatives. Similar to how some project elements are shared by all alternatives, certain project objectives such as the flood risk and riparian restoration objectives would inevitably provide the same outcome, either due to no difference in the design elements addressing the objective or through regulatory and public safety requirements. Input and feedback from project stakeholders informed the development of project alternatives and evaluation criteria, including project sponsors, the Jan Road Levee Setback Project staff, the Cedar River co-managers, the Cedar River Council, and interested area landowners. Though the evaluation criteria do not include a specific stakeholder acceptance criterion, key elements were embedded and integrated into the alternatives presented and the evaluation criteria. Alternatives were scored based on the degree to which that approach would likely fulfill each objective/criterion; scores were scaled using High, Medium, and Low, where High would be most likely to fulfill relative to other alternatives and Low would be least likely. Final ranking of alternatives (first, second, third) was based on the design team’s review of the individual scores for each alternative. The evaluation process also included a discussion of ways to optimize individual alternatives to realize greater benefits and potentially increase the alternatives score relative to the others. The outcome of these discussions (summarized in the Recommendations section) resulted in proposed modifications to the inlet design of the selected project alternative that could be carried through into 30% design. The selected project design accommodates current hydrology, wood supply, development, and infrastructure, and plans for anticipated conditions such as channel migration, avulsion, sediment movement, hydraulics, and factor potential changes in hydrology due to climate change. Summary of work completed as part of the grant deliverables: 2021: -Updated hydraulic modeling completed and reviewed by project manager and engineer in response to significant changes in design of King County’s Jan Road Levee Setback Project across the river on the right bank. -Hydraulic modeling outputs from that project informed alternatives analysis for Rutledge Johnson. -Monitored water surface elevation for stream and groundwater stage gages at the site. -Outreach Plan -Cultural Resource Study and Technical Memo 2022: -Alternatives Analysis Process, preferred alternative selected -Initiated 30% design process -Monitoring and Maintenance Plan development -Hydraulic modeling conducted -Wetland Delineation Study 2023: -30% Design Plans, specifications, and engineer’s cost estimate -30% Design Basis of Design Report -Initiated Monitoring and Maintenance Plan -Developed project permit applications -Developed Large Wood Recreational Safety Checklist -Existing condition geomorphic assessment -Hydraulic modeling and geomorphic risk assessment -Initiated 60% Design Process -Developed the Site Management Plan Agreement, coordinated with King County River and ------Floodplain Management Section -Developed Traffic Control Plan -Developed Water Quality Management Plan -Conducted site noxious weed control -Contracted soil boring explorations Throughout grant period (2020-2023): -Outreach and coordination meetings conducted between Rutledge Johnson team and Jan Road team (King County River and Floodplain Management Section), Cedar River Basin Steward, fisheries co-managers from WDFW and Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, Lake Washington/Cedar/Sammamish Watershed Salmon Recovery Council, Implementation and Technical Committees, interested neighbors in the general project area, public meetings through the Cedar River Council.