Hominy Creek – Park Expansion and Stream Restoration

Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC) recently purchased a 4.16-acre property adjoining Chestnut Mountain Nature Park in order to facilitate future park improvements and conduct a stream restoration project to lessen flooding impacts and strengthen regional resilience for future storm events.

A Win-Win-Win Outcome

“This parcel is just upstream of Chestnut Mountain Nature Park on Hominy Creek, and SAHC’s purchase of the land allows for potential expansion of park while mitigating future flood damage,” says SAHC Conservation Director Hanni Muerdter. “Hominy Creek has been hit hard by storms over the past 25 years, including by storms Fred and Helene. Flooding from Helene damaged the bridge which provides access into Chestnut Mountain Nature Park. SAHC will conduct a stream restoration project on the recently acquired tract to provide flood storage, which will help protect the adjacent park and other properties downstream.”

The property straddles Hominy Creek with a significant portion of land in the floodplain. As a narrow valley, this Haywood County stretch of Hominy Creek is consistently one of the hardest areas hit from flood damage. After experiencing major flooding multiple times in the past 25 years, the landowners were ready to sell. They listed the property for sale on the real estate market, and the Town of Canton reached out to SAHC for assistance in purchasing the land for a park expansion. 

“This tract has significant road frontage on Asheville Highway and could have been purchased for commercial storage or development, since development in floodplains can be possible with meeting certain requirements,” says Hanni. “But such development would have likely worsened impacts and damage during future flooding events. The existing floodplain offers an excellent restoration opportunity to mitigate such future flood impacts. We’re excited to work with the landowners and the Town of Canton to help them meet their goals. The landowners wanted to sell, the Town wanted to add more easily accessible areas to the park, and SAHC is proud to help improve flood resiliency in the Hominy Creek area. It’s a wonderful outcome all the way around.”

SAHC plans to transfer the property to the Town of Canton after the stream restoration project is complete. The relatively flat parcel could enable expansion of recreational creekside access and accessible walking trails close to the park’s entrance, and conservation of will land helps protect the park’s aesthetic appearance from incompatible commercial development.

SAHC’s purchase of the property was made possible by contributions from SAHC donors and members, and a grant from the Mountain Revolving Loan Fund of the Conservation Trust for North Carolina.

Stream Restoration 

Hominy Creek is a major tributary of the French Broad River. Brown trout live in the creek, and the stream corridor is an important seasonal migration corridor for the federally endangered gray bat. 

SAHC is working with Jennings Environmental on the stream restoration plan for the property. This restoration project may include re-routing Hominy Creek farther from Asheville Highway/US 23 (thus better protecting the public road), benching the floodplain, and implementing nature-based solutions, plantings and stabilization measures in partnership with Haywood Waterways Association. These interventions are projected to provide approximately up to six-acre-feet of additional flood storage capacity and will substantially reduce the risk of future flood damage to Asheville Highway and the entrance to public Chestnut Mountain Nature Park. Part of the restoration will also involve removing Helene-related debris from the property. 

“With frontage on Asheville Highway, adjacency to the public Chestnut Mountain Nature Park, and plans for the property to be used as a resilient park addition, this project site will be seen by a lot of people,” adds Hanni. “We look forward to sharing this stream restoration as a model project for future flood resilience planning in our region.”

SAHC was awarded a $470,000 grant from the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s NC Flood Resiliency Blueprint program, to fund this project.

Grants for Strengthening Flood Resilience

On Monday, Governor Josh Stein and North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) Assistant Secretary for Resilience Kathie Dello visited Western North Carolina to announce the awards of $5.7 million in grants from the DEQ’s Flood Resiliency Blueprint to reduce flood risk in the French Broad River Basin. SAHC’s stream restoration on Hominy Creek is one of the eight announced projects – which will collectively create new floodwater storage, restore and reconnect floodplains, relocate facilities and infrastructure out of harm’s way, and improve water quality. 

“Rebuilding western North Carolina after Helene means rebuilding stronger and smarter to prepare for future storms,” said Governor Stein. “These grants not only rebuild and restore the French Broad River Basin but also help protect the surrounding communities so generations of North Carolinians can live in safety.”  

The NC Flood Resiliency Blueprint is the state’s science-based and stakeholder-driven initiative designed to support the planning, evaluation, and implementation of flood resilience strategies. It is the largest statewide flood mitigation investment in North Carolina history. 

“Communities throughout our mountains were devastated by Helene, and we know that storms are becoming more intense and more frequent throughout North Carolina,” said DEQ Secretary Reid Wilson. “These Flood Resiliency Blueprint projects will make communities less vulnerable to future flooding in the French Broad River Basin and will help save lives, homes, and businesses. We appreciate the General Assembly’s strong support of the Flood Resiliency Blueprint.”