Green Street Retrofit with a side of scattered, smothered, and covered Utilities
Almost every Virginia community is working diligently to incorporate green infrastructure and water quality improvement projects into their long-range master planning vision and goals. The City of Portsmouth identified Court Street, located in the Olde Towne Historic District, as an opportunity for a green street retrofit pilot project to improve water quality and reduce runoff volume while enhancing public space without impacting the cultural and historic features of the area. The project involved retrofitting three city blocks with planter and curb extension bioretention to capture stormwater runoff at the source. Additional improvements included a grass median to reduce impervious cover, traffic calming measures, new parking and bike lanes, and safer pedestrian crossings. The City is also rehabilitating new sanitary sewer, water lines, and storm sewer as part of the Public Utilities Downtown Master Utility Plan. Stakeholder coordination with City departments was initiated to eliminate conflicts between the projects, and it was determined that the utility upgrade design should be incorporated into the Green Street Improvements project to reduce construction duration and project cost. Construction within a historic district involved numerous challenges and surprises once shovels hit the ground. From old bulkhead timbers to unknown utilities, there was never a dull moment. Sprinkle in multiple private utilities and a dash of a pandemic and you have a recipe for an exciting construction phase. The City obtained three federal grants from the Green Streets, Green Jobs, Green Towns program, in addition to a Stormwater Local Assistance Fund grant and a Virginia Clean Water Revolving Loan, to partially fund the design and construction.Author Bio
Amity is registered professional engineer, project manager, and technical principal specializing in stormwater management design, compliance, and permitting. For over 12 years, Amity has provided planning studies, design, and construction packages on a wide range of infrastructure projects for the Hampton Roads area.
