Tampa Development Installs Storm Water Management System

Tampa Bay Housing Authority opted to install a storm water management/rainwater harvesting system and a solar panel array at their new ultra-green inner-city development known as Encore Tampa in Tampa, Fla. The storm water management system, located under the new community park, controls and harvests storm water runoff to irrigate the new green space park. The new $ 450-million Encore Tampa venture is a 28-acre sustainable, mixed-use development that is designed to create an environmentally sensitive ecosystem, ultimately meeting the residents’ needs while preserving resources for future generations.

Oldcastle Precast designed and provided the modular underground retention structure for the new storm water management system, engineered by Clearwater, Fla.-based Cardno TBE, to store, treat and harvest storm water runoff on the site. The precast concrete Storm Capture retention system manages and controls the volume and discharge timing of storm water runoff. The engineered design maximizes storage volume while minimizing the project’s footprint and cost. Furthermore, the design allowed for a quick and efficient installation.

The 18,000-sq-ft, storm water retention-harvesting system includes a Storm Capture vault composed of 146 10-ft tall Storm Capture modules that can hold up to 33,000 cu ft of water before recycling it for irrigation use, two nutrient separating baffle boxes by Suntree Technologies with adjacent sediment chambers for pretreatment, and a harvesting and irrigation equipment assembly by John Deere – Green Tech. All surface storm water is collected from the site, piped into the nutrient separating baffle boxes and sediment chambers, and stored in the Storm Capture modules for irrigating the site landscape.

“One of the coolest features that we have done from a sustainability perspective. I just don’t think anything can top the storm water vault. This is one of the most unique storm water management systems in the state because of its size. Its 18,000 sq ft of vault, which accommodates 33,000 cu ft of storm water”, said Marc Marlano, assistant director of site development for Cardno TBE, in a YouTube video featured on the Encore site. “If they had used a conventional storm water system they would have lost three developable sites. It is by far one of the slickest storm water harvesting features in the state. There is no question about it. It’s just not done at this scale.”

Oldcastle Precast also supplied precast perimeter walls for the sand filter assembly, precast ramp assembly for equipment access into the sand filter, sanitary manholes and inlets. Their sister company Oldcastle APG supplied 120,000 sq ft of Belgard Hardscapes pavers and block for intricate hardscape paver walkways and permeable pavers for the center median of the main thoroughfare to reduce the heat island effect and aid in storm water management

The entire Encore development is planning to achieve the U.S. Green Building Council LEED Gold certification.

Source: Oldcastle Precast