Holyoke Hydroelectric Project Comprehensive Recreation Land Management Plan
Connecticut River, Holyoke, Massachusetts

The Louis Berger Group, Inc. (Berger) completed a Comprehensive Recreation Land Management Plan for the Holyoke Water Power Company’s Holyoke Hydroelectric as a condition of the project’s 40 year license. The plan consisted of three parts; a recreation plan, land management plan, and a buffer zone management plan. For the recreation plan Berger addressed a variety of issues including an assessment of the future recreational needs at the project, facility development, operation, and maintenance, strategies for minimizing conflict among users, site plans of existing recreational sites located within the project boundary and those in the surrounding region.

For the land management plan Berger included plans for conservation easements and strategies for maintaining open space, preserving public access, and preserving wildlife habitat on lands around the project.

In the buffer zone management plan, Berger described plans for allowable uses within the buffer zone, presented maps delineating the buffer zone area, and presented criteria for selecting buffer zone widths.

Berger represented the Holyoke Water Power Company at meetings with agencies and public interest groups, and has advised Holyoke Water Power on FERC re-licensing issues related to recreation, aesthetics, and land use.