To protect flood-prone communities from damage during intense rainfall, New York City is implementing an innovative cloudburst management program. These installations comprise clustered stormwater management projects at the sub-catchment scale, which rapidly absorb and store large amounts of stormwater during a “cloudburst,” or heavy downpour. Cloudburst management combines the tools of grey infrastructure—such as sewer pipes and underground storage tanks—and green infrastructure—such as rain gardens and porous pavement.

EnTech is providing civil design services for the federally funded development of a cloudburst hub in the Corona neighborhood of Queens to alleviate flooding and minimize damage to property and infrastructure. The project area spans 380 acres, with installations centering on hotspots likely to experience deep flooding (1 foot or more) or nuisance flooding (4 inches to 1 foot) after cloudbursts. The hub design includes the installation of precast porous concrete pavement (PPCP) and on-site stormwater management practices (SMPs). Working as a subconsultant on the design team, EnTech is developing designs for PPCP in roadway parking lanes at 21 locations. The PPCP will capture stormwater from tributary drainage areas and route runoff to on-site SMPs.