The Clear Lake City Water Authority (CLCWA) identified the increased needs for water detention due to the development increase in this area and bought an unprofitable golf course in 2005. SWA was engaged to design and master-plan the effort’s detention pond. The plan’s goals included flood mitigation and water quality improvements, along with the establishment of open space and recreation areas. The site has ultimately become a large nature park with ample trails, combined with maximized floodwater storage.
An engineering study (commissioned by the Texas Coastal Watershed Program, a part of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and Texas Sea Grant) for the wetlands prefaced conversion of the golf course into a detention area, providing necessary information for the proposed wetlands to become part of a functional stormwater treatment system, so that the wetlands not only serve as attractive natural spaces and habitat, but also function optimally for water quality improvement. The new CLCWA detention facilities add 1,680 acre-feet of flood storage and 39 acres of constructed wetlands to help improve an impaired water system. SWA collaborated on a native planting plan for the area with a local community volunteer landscape group; the resulting design provides food resources that support bird migration and nesting.
Learn more about how Exploration Green doubles as flood infrastructure in this Houston Public Media podcast
Long Beach Shoreline
SWA prepared a land use and urban design plan for six miles of waterfront adjacent to downtown Long Beach. Through a series of meetings with local community stakeholders, we were able to determine the different needs of each district in the plan: of critical importance was the need to preserve valuable open space inland, and to maintain an ecological corridor ...
Changsha Baxizhou Island
Over many decades, public agencies in China have sought to solve growing flooding issues in a defensive way: fortifying and hardening river edges, raising levee heights, and ultimately separating the people from historical connections to the water. With an understanding of river flow processes and volumes and of wetland and native forest ecology, this separati...
Guthrie Green Park
Guthrie Green transforms a 2.6-acre truck yard into a lively urban park in the heart of downtown Tulsa’s emerging arts district. Opened in September 2012, Guthrie Green has become the area’s leading destination, drawing 3,000 plus people weekly to activities that have enriched the urban experience and spurred district-wide revitalization. The high-performance ...
Sims Bayou
The story of Sims Bayou is based on a large vision. The project is the first step in implementing a long-range plan for watershed greenbelts in the Houston region, a comprehensive system which addresses the potential for parks, wildlife habitat, and economic real estate revitalization while also controlling flooding. The Sims Bayou project has profoundly chang...