Jackson County Parks is working in coordination with the Oregon State Marine Board (OSMB) to develop plans for the future replacement of the boat ramp at Upper Rogue Regional Park (URRP). To date, the county was awarded a grant from the OSMB for studies including a cultural resource survey, a wetland delineation, and a hydrological engineering study. These studies are important, as they help determine the limits of any future construction. For example, if wetlands, or cultural resources are present, construction would likely be prohibited, or limited. Therefore, this is one of the first steps in a project in identifying site constraints. The hydrological study is important, as it maps the river bottom, analysis river flows and ensures that a future ramp is not constructed in an area that will be washed out, or silted in during high water events.
The OSMB has assisted the county by developing four very HIGH LEVEL CONCEPTUAL drawings of what could POTENTIALLY occur at the site. These drawings are strictly produced to help get input from the public, none of them will be constructed as shown.
The concepts are all geared towards three goals; 1) Lengthen the existing ramp to allow it to be used in lower river conditions than currently allowed; 2) Reduce congestion on the ramp between recreational boaters and commercial rafters during busy summer month; 3) Increase traffic flow and reduce congestion in the parking and staging areas to allow for faster launching and retrieval of boats.
Users of the park are encouraged to review the four options and provide comment on the pros and cons of each alternative to help shape the next round of conceptual drawings. Comments can be emailed to parksinfo@jacksoncounty.org by November 30, 2022. If you would like to be placed on the project contact list, please be sure to include your name, phone number and preferred email address.
In the meantime, your input is key to developing a design that meets the public need. We encourage you to review the options and provide your thoughts!
Next steps: Comments collected via email and from the public open house held on October 13, 2022 will be provided to the OSMB design team and used to produce additional alternatives that take comments and suggestions into consideration. Once developed, these concepts will be provided through an additional public input process to gain further input. This will likely occur in the spring of 2023. There may be an additional, third round of public input prior to a final conceptual design production. Once finalized, permits for construction will need to be obtained, which typically takes up to two years, then grants for construction would need to be obtained. Construction of any future boat ramp likely will not occur for 4 to 5 years.