We’re using the “Living with Water” approach to more effectively manage and retain stormwater within the city so drainage systems don’t get overwhelmed.
The Blue and Green Corridors project is located in the Gentilly Neighborhood, an area that suffers from frequent flooding and has a lack of facilities to help residents lead healthy and active lifestyles. Our job? To develop a comprehensive neighborhood re-envisioning that would improve the resiliency, health, and economic framework of Gentilly.
Our neighborhood redesign uses large neutral grounds to store water during flood events and create beneficial water areas to enhance the community. Elysian Fields Avenue will have a beautifully planted canal with water features and play spaces that bring the community together. Green infrastructure interventions were designed to reintroduce water to the ground, and a network of biking and pedestrian facilities (using a complete streets approach) were designed to create new connections to the places where the residents work, play, and live.
We based our work on the EPA Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) to calculate the frequency of storm events and actual reduction of damages, then quantified the improvements with a triple bottom line analysis to capture the effect of flood reductions, healthier lifestyles, and economic activity. The models showed improvements in all three categories. Plus, an analysis of the data shows the benefits of the improvements exceed the cost of the project—avoiding $4 billion over the next 50 years.
At a Glance
- Offices
- Client
-
- City of New Orleans
- Feature
- How to manage flooding while improving the cityscape
- Award
- Autodesk Excellence Awards Best Infrastructure Project, 2022
Meet Our Team
-
Bernadette Callahan
Senior Associate, Green Infrastructure Sector Leader, Water
-
Stephanie Coffman
Senior Principal, River System & Basin Management Program Lead
-
Travis Ewen
Senior Associate
-
Dan Grandal
Vice President
-
John Malueg
Vice President
-
Daniel Proctor
Principal, Water Resources Engineer
-
Josh Running
Principal
-
Mike Rutkowski
Senior Principal, Complete Streets Leader
-
Amy Seek
Principal
-
Gary Sorge
Vice President, Community Development, Discipline Leader (Landscape Architecture)
-
Hilary Thibodeaux
Principal, Senior Project Manager
We’re better together
-
Become a client
Partner with us today to change how tomorrow looks. You’re exactly what’s needed to help us make it happen in your community.
-
Design your career
Work with passionate people who are experts in their field. Our teams love what they do and are driven by how their work makes an impact on the communities they serve.