At a Glance
The redevelopment plan allows water from more than 50% of the existing impervious cover to be filtered or harvested for reuse, improving water quality and attenuating the flows of the receiving Symphony Stream.
Project Description
Downtown Columbia is a mixed use redevelopment plan in the heart of Columbia. The plan converted acres of surface parking lots built prior to stormwater management into five neighborhoods emphasizing multimodal transit integrated with green infrastructure. Biohabitats designed the stormwater green infrastructure using environmental site design practices. Portions of the runoff from the first planned building rooftop will be filtered and harvested using subsurface cisterns, while the majority of the rooftop runoff will be treated in micro-bioretention practices designed into the building's internal courtyard and external promenade. Meanwhile, tree planters will be installed along the streets and sidewalks to accept roadway runoff. The implementation of this stormwater green infrastructure plan will represent one of the first case studies whereby environmental site design volumes will be achieved onsite for such dense redevelopment. Biohabitats was also the sustainability consultant for the project and ensured that design guidelines for the Warfield Neighborhood integrated sustainability goals such as reducing heat island effect, enhancing native wildlife habitat, and encouraging walkability and bikability.