S-27 Spillway Redesign

Department of Civil, Engvironmental & Geomatics Engineering

Overview

The SFWMD S-27 structure is a vertical lift spillway gate located at 398 NE 82nd St., Miami, FL 33138. This structure provides a controlled release of water from the C-7 canal downstream into Biscayne Bay, which is connected to the ocean. The Stormwater Surge Solutions team is tasked with proposing an appropriate redesign of the S-27 structure that will help with the increasing demand for drainage in the area. While designing a plan to upgrade the structure, we consider the current and future increases in water levels due to flood events imposed by climate change, sea level rise, and increasing storm events. Over the course of the year, the team has completed a Response to a Request for Qualifications, a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (per ASTM 1527-13 standards), an Alternative Analysis on site location, as well as pertinent calculations and design-work to complete a site plan. The new spillway structure location has been improved by moving it approximately 200 feet upstream, at an elevation more favorable than where the structure sits now. The lift gates for the spillway will be elevated from 4 feet to 8 feet sitting aside of a new pumping station that will be managing flow through the C-7 basin. For the site plan, the team thought about the logistics of this area, and what would be required for it to be operable and be able to receive big equipment for possible maintenance of the pumping station.

Community Benefit: The team considered the environmental impact of the project and is proposing a constructed wetland that would fill in the open green areas around the site. This will help reduce runoff rate, improve water quality, and stabilize the soils along the canal to help prevent erosion.

Team Members

• Dominique Bethel
• Alexandra Colvin
• Nicholas Pessot
  
• Matthew Slaven

Sponsor

South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD)