Camp Curtin YMCA and Capital Region Water broke ground on a stormwater management project for the Camp Curtin Campus and surrounding Cornerstone Neighborhood.
The Big Green Block – located at the Camp Curtin YMCA, the Cornerstone Neighborhood, and several surrounding side streets – is being built in partnership by Capital Region Water and Camp Curtin YMCA. The green infrastructure elements are necessary for the overall goal of improving the health of local waterways, reducing combined sewer overflows, and beautifying the Camp Curtin YMCA and surrounding neighborhood.
“The Big Green Block is a tangible example of two Harrisburg-based organizations working together to build the social and environmental capacity of our city,” said Charlotte Katzenmoyer, CEO of CRW. “We care deeply about how our work effects the community, so we sought public input on design.” One of the most eye-catching features will include a Big Green Wall. This green stormwater wall consists of parallel troughs mounted to the side of the YMCA building that provide both surface and soil storage for runoff coming from the roof. The overflow and under drain from each trough flow a stormwater planter box that will be lined and have both an overflow and under drain to safely convey stormwater away from the building.
Additionally, a rain garden and storage/infiltration trench along the edge of the YMCA parking lot and beneath the playing field along Jefferson Street will manage runoff from the parking lot, as well as runoff from Woodbine, Jefferson, Forrest, and 6th streets. The rain garden will overflow to a subsurface storage/infiltration trench beneath the field that will provide additional storage for parking lot runoff as well as runoff from adjacent streets. New inlets installed upslope of existing sewer-connected inlets connect directly to the trench and divert right-of-way runoff.
Construction of the project is expected to be complete by late summer/early fall 2022.