Over $300 million in water and sewer infrastructure improvements are overseen annually by Charlotte Water (CLTWater) in NC. To address the needs of the region’s rapidly growing communities, CLTWater identified upgrades of the Dairy and Derita tributary sewer branches as priority projects. STV, as a subconsultant to B.R.S. Inc, was selected to design forward-thinking infrastructure improvements for these two areas as part of a design-build team.

STV performed a sewer system evaluation survey for the Dairy Branch Trunk and designed 15,400 linear feet of 36- to 18-inch gravity sewers to replace the roughly 8,500 linear feet of 18-inch to 10-inch gravity sewers that currently provide service within the city’s Transit Oriented Development (TOD) light rail corridor. For the Derita Branch Trunk, the firm designed 18,500 linear feet of 30- to 18-inch gravity sewers. These sewers will accommodate the future development of multi-story, multi-family housing and hotels expected within the area, in addition to craft breweries that generate a high volume of wastewater.

STV’s design incorporated micro-tunneling to avoid impacts to vehicular traffic and existing subterranean infrastructure while also eliminating multiple aerial sewer creek crossings. Additionally, the firm’s design entailed the removal of exposed piping at the crossings, which will preserve the area’s natural settings and reduce environmental risks.