Snohomish County acquired the Rhodes property with other (non-RCO) funding. This project funded acquisition-related costs for the 85-acres property including demolition, fencing, and relocation expenses. Ultimately a portion of the property will be a part of the Smith Island estuary restoration project. The Snohomish Basin Salmonid Recovery Technical Committee (1999) identified artificial barriers to access and the loss of estuarine wetlands as key factors contributing to the decline of Chinook salmon. Haas et al. (2001) estimated that the Snohomish estuary has lost approximately 85 percent of its tidal marsh and at least 50 percent of its smolt production capacity for Chinook since the late 19th century. Consequently, the estuary may commonly constrain the Snohomish River basin's production of Chinook salmon. The Rhodes property is adjacent to the 269-acre property (also purchased from the Rhodes family) with SRFB funding in 2001. Combining these acres will increase the total potential restoration area, and would include reconnection of a second large blind tidal channel - key Chinook salmonid habitat for rearing, sheltering and transitioning physiologically from fresh to saltwater. Restoration would include breaching existing dikes, setback dike construction, large woody debris supplementation, native revegetation, increasing edge habitat complexity, and providing public access and interpretive opportunities. This project has been explicitly highlighted in the Snohomish Basin Salmon Recovery Plan.