Friday, March 14, 2025

DEP and Partners Celebrate $6.7 Million Stormwater Drainage Upgrades at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi, Flushing Hospital and Pratt Institute

 

Group shot of Resilient NYC Partners in front of in-construction drainage upgrades at Jacobi Medical Center


Stormwater Storage Systems Built at NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi, Flushing Hospital and Pratt Institute will Capture More Than 7 Million Gallons of Stormwater Annually, Helping to Reduce Flooding; Photos Available Here; Information on Securing Funding for Similar Projects on Private Property Can be Found Here

The New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) joined with NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi and the global design and consultancy firm Arcadis to announce the ongoing stormwater drainage upgrades at the Jacobi Hospital campus. DEP is investing nearly $5 million to build stormwater drainage and storage systems beneath three of the parking lots on the campus through its Resilient NYC Partners program. When completed, the stormwater drainage and storage systems will be able to capture more than 5 million gallons a year. The project will not only help to protect the hospital’s facilities, staff and visitors, but also create additional capacity in the larger Pelham Parkway sewer system, helping to reduce flooding throughout the neighborhood. DEP and Arcadis, who is managing the construction at each site, recently completed similar upgrades at Flushing Hospital in Queens and Pratt Institute in Brooklyn with a $1.78 million investment.

“Climate change is bringing more rain to New York City than our drainage systems were built to handle, which is why we’re investing in upgrades to protect New Yorkers in every neighborhood,” said DEP Commissioner Rohit T. Aggarwala. “Thank you to NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi, Arcadis, and all of our partners for helping us complete these important upgrades for the residents and businesses in Pelham Parkway, as well as Flushing and Clinton Hill.”

“New York City’s public hospital system knows full well the impact climate-related weather events can have on our facilities, and that we don’t have the time to wait before we act,” said NYC Health + Hospitals Senior Vice President for the Office of Facilities Development Manuel Saez, PhD. “The completion of this state-of-the-art, cost-effective green infrastructure solution beneath the Jacobi Hospital parking lot will ensure the continued safety of the facility for our staff and patients for years to come. Thank you to the DEP and Arcadis teams for delivering this project expediently and for their work installing climate-smart infrastructure throughout our great city.”

“NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi is excited to partner with the Department of Environmental Protection to install these green infrastructure improvements throughout our campus,” Christopher Mastromano, Chief Executive Officer of NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi. “Each year, we will capture millions of gallons of stormwater, reduce our dependence on the local sewer system, and help reduce flooding in our neighborhood.”

At Jacobi Hospital, teams installed stormwater storage systems under parking lots 1, 3 and 4. Construction crews and hospital management sequenced the installation to ensure only one lot was closed at a time, limiting impact on hospital staff, patients, and visitors. For each system, the existing asphalt was removed, as well as the rock and soil below it, to a depth of 6-8 feet. Crews then installed specially designed subsurface drainage and storage infrastructure, placed gravel and soil on top of it, and laid new asphalt to rebuild the parking area.

When completed, the stormwater drainage and storage systems at Jacobi Hospital will manage runoff from 7 acres of impervious area. The systems are composed of over 16,000 individual tanks which can collectively store nearly 400,000 gallons. Parking lots 1 and 3 are completed and will capture 2.81 million gallons and 1.04 million gallons a year, respectively. Lot 4, which is currently under construction, will capture 1.40 million gallons a year. These projects will help to alleviate flooding and address chronic drainage issues at Jacobi. Moreover, by creating additional capacity in the sewer system, the project helps to improve the health of Westchester Creek and mitigate flood risks to the Pelham Parkway sewer system.

The stormwater drainage and storage systems at Jacobi Hospital advance a core commitment of NYC Health + Hospitals’ Climate Resilience Plan, a series of infrastructure projects to ensure the sustainability and resiliency of the public health system’s facilities in the face of climate change. Creating a stormwater flood mitigation system will ensure staff and patients can continue to access the hospital for critically needed services during periods of heavy or extreme rainfall.

Additionally, DEP and Arcadis have recently completed similar work at Flushing Hospital and Pratt Institute.

At Flushing Hospital, the Emergency Room lot was rebuilt with subsurface drainage infrastructure that will capture 390,000 gallons of stormwater annually, reducing flooding and improving the health of nearby Flushing Creek. Additional drainage upgrades are being scheduled at the hospital for the coming months. The work at the Emergency Room lot cost $286,000.

Pratt Institute is located in the Clinton Hill neighborhood of Brooklyn and the drainage upgrades took place at two parking lots on campus. Drainage infrastructure built under the Institute’s North Lot will capture 760,000 gallons of stormwater each year, while the rebuilt Main Lot will detain 990,000 gallons annually. This work is complete and will help to reduce flooding in the neighborhood as well as keep pollution out of the East River. The project cost $1.5 million.

The pay-for-performance agreement between DEP and Arcadis allows large private properties in the city, with 50,000 square feet or more of site-level impervious area, to install green infrastructure with funding from the Resilient NYC Partners program. This program simplifies the process for private property owners by having Arcadis handle the bulk of project implementation, which makes stormwater management more attainable to those that qualify, while also expediting the implementation timeline. The types of green infrastructure built through this program include subsurface storage systems, porous pavements, rain gardens, and other site-level practices that can cost-effectively manage stormwater runoff from large impervious areas such as parking lots. As part of the partnership, work has already been completed at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn and a private company, T-Mina Supply, in Queens.

DEP’s nation-leading green infrastructure program has constructed more than 13,000 green infrastructure installations including curbside rain gardens, green roofs, subsurface storage, permeable pavers and green medians. All of these green installations intercept stormwater before it can drain into the sewer system, thereby creating additional capacity in the sewers, which can help to reduce flooding and overflows into local waterways.

About the NYC Department of Environmental Protection

DEP manages New York City’s water supply, providing approximately 1 billion gallons of high-quality drinking water each day to nearly 10 million residents, including 8.5 million in New York City. The water is delivered from a watershed that extends more than 125 miles from the city, comprising 19 reservoirs and three controlled lakes. Approximately 7,000 miles of water mains, tunnels and aqueducts bring water to homes and businesses throughout the five boroughs, and 7,500 miles of sewer lines and 96 pump stations take wastewater to 14 in-city treatment plants. DEP also protects the health and safety of New Yorkers by enforcing the Air and Noise Codes and asbestos rules. DEP has a robust capital program, with a planned $33.3 billion in investments over the next 10 years. For more information, visit nyc.gov/dep, like us on Facebook, or follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter.

About NYC Health + Hospitals

NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest public health care system in the nation serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlus health plan—all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 42,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NYCHealthSystem or Twitter at @NYCHealthSystem.

About Arcadis

Arcadis is the leading global design & consultancy organization for natural and built assets. We maximize impact for our clients and the communities they serve by providing effective solutions through sustainable outcomes, focus and scale, and digitalization. We are 36,000 people, active in more than 30 countries that generate €4.0 billion in gross revenues. We support UN-Habitat with knowledge and expertise to improve the quality of life in rapidly growing cities around the world.

No comments:

Post a Comment