Richardson's Concrete River

A story in the Atlantic, "L.A. Wants to Turn Its Concrete 'River' Into a Real River," tells about efforts in California to remove most of the concrete from the river channel of the Los Angeles River (poured in the 1930s for flood control) and restore the natural habitat of the river. This story gives me an opportunity to correct a misconception I had about Richardson's own concrete 'river.'

After the jump, an update on the construction in downtown Richardson on the Floyd Branch of Cottonwood Creek.

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According to the April 26, 2013, edition of "Week in Review":

The project will improve drainage in the Floyd Branch Watershed, which collects drainage from 2.6 square miles in south central Richardson and eventually flows to White Rock Lake. The project will add capacity to the area's drainage system by adding new underground drainage pipes north and south of Main Street between US-75 and the DART rail line. No existing open channels will be enclosed.

Source: City of Richardson.

Note that last sentence: "No existing open channels will be enclosed." My bad. I had assumed that it was the ditch along Texas Street that was being buried. Apparently not. I would have preferred something be done to restore the natural drainage (a la Los Angeles), but I'll accept the commitment not to enclose any existing open channels. Hold our ground.