KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A new infrastructure project at the Kansas City VA Medical Center will create a new outdoor space for patients while also working to reduce the volume of stormwater in the city’s sewer system.
KC Water on Thursday revealed the green infrastructure project, which includes a green space where stormwater will soak into the ground, rather than travel down the pavement and into combined sewer systems. The green space will include a new walking trail and park area on the VA Medical Center grounds.
“We spend quite a bit of effort with our consent decree program to build large pipes underground, but increasingly we want to be able to have more work occur on the surface, where our residents and customers can actually enjoy the amenities,” KC Water deputy director of engineering Matt Bond told 41 Action News. “If we can both create something that is beneficial to the residents and people in the neighborhood and hold water back from the combined sewer system, we get a double benefit.”
KC Water Dept is creating a green infrastructure plan at the KCVA Medical Center. The environmental green space will handle overflow storm water by creating a bio swale, planting plants and creating drainage channels@41actionnews pic.twitter.com/mT2qrcd54w
— Jonathan goede (@jgkshb) January 9, 2020
Kansas City entered into a consent decree with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2010 to reduce the volume of overflow into the city's sewer system. The project at the VA Medical Center is part of KC Water's Smart Sewer program, a 25-year plan to address that challenge.
The project also includes the installation of new storm pipes, retention basins to hold addition water during rainfall, a bioswale to guide stormwater and remove debris, and a drainage channel to control the flower of water, according to a news release from KC Water.
Construction on the project began in October and will continue through fall 2020.
