McKenzie River Trust recently purchased 122 acres of riverfront property on the Upper McKenzie.
From the Register-Guard:
The Trust finalized the purchase of the additional acreage, which includes the Finn Rock Boat Landing — which will remain open to the public — and the former Finn Rock Logging Camp, where Rosboro Lumber workers lived from the 1940s through 1980s.
Both properties were purchased from Springfield-based Rosboro, each for $775,000, or a combined cost of $1,550,000, in a closed-bid auction.
Liz Lawrence, the trust’s associate director, said the trust used private donations and a low-interest loan to buy both properties, now jointly referred to as Finn Rock Reach. The Eugene Water & Electric Board, which is keen to see its McKenzie River water supply protected, kicked in a $250,000 grant for conservation and restoration efforts.
While specific plans have not been finalized, Lawrence said the trust wants to conserve and enhance Finn Rock Reach in different ways, such as managing weeds, pulling invasive species and planting native plants. The trust also may restore areas affected by timber harvest, or make gravel ponds on the property less hospitable to non-native fish species, such as bass.
From MRT’s Press Release:
“We are grateful to the folks at Rosboro for working with us on this legacy project,” said Joe Moll, Executive Director of the McKenzie River Trust. “When you think of the McKenzie River, you imagine clean blue water, incredible salmon spawning habitat, and healthy floodplain forests. This property has all of that.”
