Jack Zunka of River Design Group uses a GPS-enabled device to map locations in Bear Creek last week near Hawthorne Park in downtown Medford. The consulting group is working with several local organizations under a federal grant to study barriers to fish passage in the creek.

A storm water treatment facility will be built this year to help clean up Bear Creek in Medford and set the stage for a major development along Riverside Avenue.

The Medford Urban Renewal Agency on Thursday approved $300,000 for the project, which will treat storm water from about 60 acres of homes and businesses in the Liberty Park neighborhood.

Currently, untreated storm water from the area flows into Bear Creek.

“This takes care of all the storm water treatment in the south Liberty Park neighborhood,” said Harry Weiss, director of MURA.

The project will capture storm water from roughly Bear Creek to the east, Central Avenue to the west, Jackson Street to the south and Edwards Street to the north.

Medford public works will manage the project, and the city of Medford has contributed another $500,000 toward the treatment facility.

The project will move an existing storm drain line to make way for a proposed community market on Riverside Avenue.

MURA has been negotiating a property swap deal at 908-920 Riverside Ave., south of East McAndrews Road. MURA is exchanging some property it owns with Esteban Gonzales, owner of La Fiesta Restaurant.

The property exchange clears the way for Gonzales to build a new community grocery store on Riverside Avenue and eventually for the city to build a proposed pedestrian bridge over Bear Creek.

Once finalized, MURA could end up with almost 4 acres behind the grocery store with the hope of attracting a developer to build an up-to-45-unit apartment complex.

The apartment complex idea has recently generated interest from a Portland housing developer.

As part of the storm water facility project, two fire hydrants will be installed to provide sufficient water for the new development.

Water connections, as well as curb and gutter replacement, need to be completed along Riverside Avenue before a street resurfacing project begins on July 5.

The contract to award the storm water treatment facility and other work will be considered for approval by Medford City Council on April 18.

Over the years, MURA has developed partnerships with private companies to help leverage public money to create projects in and around the downtown area.

MURA derives its money from collecting the increases in property taxes in a designated area.

The low-income Liberty Park neighborhood has been receiving considerable attention from MURA, which has committed $13,964,503 to this area just north of downtown.

Some of the dollars are tied up in commitments to help build other projects, including the Dolores Huerta apartments on Central Avenue. MURA has set aside $4.2 million to help fund this project, which will require state grants to build more than 100 low-income apartments. This will be the third year in a row that the city has been in the running for state grants to build the project.

Another $2,166,317 has been committed to downtown projects, including the $1,205,250 to help build the newly completed Genesis Apartments.