A local conservation group is hosting another tour of Westbard's Willett Branch this weekend. The Little Falls Watershed Alliance has been pushing county planners working on the Westbard Sector Plan to include improvements to the Willett Branch in their recommendations. The stream runs through the Westbard area of Bethesda in a concrete channel prone to picking up trash and stormwater runoff from the surrounding businesses and industrial uses. Last November, the group hosted a similar tour of the Willett Branch. "Daylighting," or restoring the stream to its natural state, could be one of the biggest improvements planners will recommend when they finalize the sector plan this summer. Planners have also discussed beefing up the green areas around the Willett Branch, something that could be required of any stream-adjacent property owners who wish to redevelop. The Little Falls Watershed Alliance will start Saturday's tour at 11 a.m. in the parking lot of Westwood Center II (5110 Ridgefield Road). Those who wish to take the return leg of the tour back up the creek will need boots and flashlights.
Walk The Willett Branch This Weekend
