Managing Storm Water at a Car Dealership

March 27, 2014

Luther Brookdale Chevrolet in Brooklyn Center, Minn., needed a storm water management solution to support a complete upgrade to its facility. Because parking lot space is critical to the dealership’s success, an underground system that maximizes all available surface space for retail purposes was mandatory.

The system had to meet stringent local regulations, including control of two-, 10- and 100-year storm events for rate control. Infiltration was a major consideration, so Triton Stormwater Solutions’ open-bottom design, which helps replicate a site’s natural hydrology, was an advantage.

Because of Triton’s flexibility of design with main header rows and distribution rows at opposite ends of the parking lot, this two-part system was chosen to best conform to the site’s natural drainage patterns. The two separate sites are able to store more than 18,000 cu ft of storm water. Because the main header row at each location features a special sediment floor, maintenance and cleaning are simplified, thus reducing costs and preserving the integrity of the storage system.

After initial site preparation, the chambers were placed, and the walls of the trench were lined with geofabric. The strength of the chambers allowed for rapid backfilling, and a total above-chamber coverage of just 16 in. After the stone coverage was in place, construction traffic could move around the site freely, even before the pavement layer was in place. “This was the first [Triton system] we have ever used, and everything went really well,” said Jeff Scherer of Metro Utilities. “It was easy to install and everything just fastened together.”