Laserfiche WebLink
<br />from about 11 inches at Buena Vista to over 30 inches in the higher <br /> <br /> <br />mountain elevations where most of the precipitation occurs as snow. <br /> <br /> <br />Melting of the snowpack causes runoff during the spring and sustained <br /> <br /> <br />flow in Cottonwood Creek. In Buena Vista, the normal mean temperatures <br /> <br /> <br />range from 25.6 degrees (Fahrenheit) in January to 64.3 degrees in July. <br /> <br /> <br />The mean annual temperature is 44.0 degrees. More than 85 percent of <br /> <br /> <br />the total drainage area is within the San Isabel National Forest. land <br /> <br /> <br />use includes recreation, grazing, and a small amount of lumbering, <br /> <br /> <br />Development within the National Forest Boundaries is under controlled <br /> <br /> <br />conditions and will have minor effects on potential flooding in the <br /> <br /> <br />downstream areas. <br /> <br />In addition to potential flood problems, the poor drainage character- <br /> <br /> <br />Istics of flood plain soils are a constraint to septic systems and wells <br /> <br /> <br />for domestic water. <br /> <br />For study purposes and ease of identifying locations in the flood plain, <br /> <br /> <br />the study area has been divided into stream segments called reaches. <br /> <br /> <br />Beginning at the lower end and progressing upstream on the main channel <br /> <br /> <br />of Cottonwood Creek ~re reach numbers 1, 2, and 3. Below the confluence <br /> <br /> <br />with North Cottonwood Creek, out of bank flows from the main channel <br /> <br /> <br />follow the course of two older channels and these stream segments have <br />been designated reach numbers 4 and 5. <br /> <br />The reach distances are as follows: <br /> <br />tn 1865, mining for gold and silver was the main attraction for the <br />early settlers. The townsite for Buena Vista, originally called <br />Cottonwood, was acquired in 1879. Buena Vista was the Chaffee County <br />seat until 1928;, then the county seat was moved to Salida, due to a <br />shift in the population concentration. Ranching, irrigated farming, the <br /> <br />reformatory at Buena Vista, and the mining operations at Climax, are the <br /> <br />main source of employment and the economic base. Tourism and recreation, <br /> <br />stimulated by the natural scenic beauty, have had a significant effect <br />on the economy. In 1960 the population of Buena Vista was 1,806 people. <br />Population has been increasing with 1,962 persons in 1970, and another <br />rise to 2,080 people in 1975. Important to the trend of development is <br />the encroachment of subdivisions.onto agricultural land.. land formerly <br /> <br /> <br />used for irrigated farming in the Cottonwood Creek flood plain, has <br /> <br />developed into a golf course with attractive building sites for homes. <br /> <br />Reach Number Distance in Mi les <br />I 1.7 <br />2 1.4 <br />3 2.9 <br />4 2.1 <br />5 1.3 <br />Total = 9.4 ml1es <br /> <br />The reach locations are shown on the Flood Hazard Study Area' Map. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />6 <br /> <br />5 <br />