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YEA 2022 – Lake Shore Drive Drainage Improvements

YEA 2022 – Lake Shore Drive Drainage Improvements

Baxter Woodman

Project Location: Lake Park, Florida

Category: Water + Stormwater + Wastewater

Started: September 14, 2018

Completed: February 24, 2022

Project Team: 

Design & Construction Engineering- Baxter 

& Woodman, Inc.

Electrical Engineering- Smith 

Engineering Consultants, Inc.

Landscape Architecture- Wayne Villavaso Landscape Architecture, Inc.

Project Summary: Lake Shore Drive was identified as part of the Town of Lake Park’s capital improvements program. In the early 1960s, new land was created east of the roadway by dredging fill from what is now the Lake Worth Lagoon. As development occurred, the road became a low feature of the overall drainage basin which was constructed with minimal roadway drainage infrastructure. Lake Shore Drive has suffered severe flooding due to king tides and storm surges, worsening each year. The Town has set goals to abate the effects of sea level rise, improve water quality, replace aging infrastructure, and enhance the roadway corridor aesthetics to support existing residents and attract new re-development.  

An out-of-the-box holistic approach was taken to achieve the Town’s goals by designing a system that works within the constraints of a low-lying closed basin. Lake Shore Drive was prone to frequent flooding with road elevations ranging from 2.0 to 3.2 feet, NAVD. An innovative drainage system was designed to include pumping stormwater up and into a dry detention area/bioswale for water quality treatment before discharging to the Lake Worth Lagoon. The project included potable water, sanitary sewer, landscaping, and lighting improvements along the roadway corridor. The project received a $3.5 million Hazard Mitigation Grant from FEMA and was completed with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on February 24, 2022.

The project addresses current flooding issues, king tides and Sea Level Rise (SLR) as well as providing a completely new pedestrian friendly corridor for the area’s residents. The project has already proven its value even before it was finished. In September 2021, residents observed that their road was not flooded by the king tides that were occurring at the time. Flooding was observed elsewhere (offsite) which clearly showed positive results of the project.  Two tropical storms have also occurred since completion with no roadway flooding.