The Issaquah Creek WaterWays Program is a city sponsored program to acquire creekside properties that have identified high resource values. Although Issaquah Creek meanders through the city's urban core, it supports rich habitat values that sustain listed endangered and priority wildlife species. With this application, the City has identified the Johnson Property (also known as "Guano Acres"), a 7.8 acre site, as one of the last large and undeveloped properties located on the creek in the city for acquisition. In addition, acquisition of this site will protect over 600 feet of in-stream and riparian corridor (both sides of the creek). The proposed acquisition site is identified in the WRIA #8 Proposed Lake Washington/Cedar/Sammamish Watershed Chinook Salmon Conservation Plan as a Tier 1 site (Project #I-220 - Acquisition) for the protection/preservation of Issaquah Chinook Salmon. The plan notes: "This 600 ft. reach of Issaquah Creek offers excellent floodplain restoration, wetland enhancement, side channels, and riparian enhancement potential." The WaterWays Program and Chinook Salmon Conservation Plan focus on protection of Chinook salmon habitat in order to have the most impact on where all species of salmonids spawn and rear. Without preservation of these habitat values along segments of Issaquah Creek, such as this proposed acquistion project would provide, recovery of the Issaquah salmonid species would be further jeopardized.