Storm Water System Installation

Half-Street and North Road Improvement, and
Lower Griswold Parking Project $5,135,000

A storm water drain line has been installed under Palatine Hill Road for its entire length conjoining Lewis & Clark College property. The drain line passes through Griswold parking lot and east on North Road as it reaches an outfall point east of the Tennis Dome. This storm line will collect water from Palatine Hill Road. Particulates will be removed and the contained water will be detained in order to permit controlled release of water to the environment.

Sidewalks, a bicycle lane, and landscaping have been added to Palatine Hill Road along the periphery of the Campus. This improves accessibility and safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. Landscaping improves the appearance of the College grounds from the roadway.

The North Road has been realigned with Palatine Hill Road in order to improve visibility when traveling through the intersection. Realignment and improvement of the roadway, half-street improvements, and landscaping resulted in the loss of 96 parking spaces from Griswold Parking Lot and its connecting system of access roads. Construction of a new parking lot, Lower Griswold Lot, which is located east of the Tennis Dome, provides 99 new parking spaces. A notable feature of the new lot is a bio-swale in the center of the lot. It is a large depression covered with natural vegetation. It is not intended for parking. The bio-swale accepts storm water from the surface of the parking lot, provides an area for natural biological treatment of the entrained water, and detains large volumes of water generated over short time periods during storm events.

During the same time that Lewis & Clark College was installing a storm water line and constructing half-street improvements on Palatine Hill Road, the City of Portland installed a new water line along the same route. The new water line provided increased water pressure to both the College and the surrounding neighborhood. Heightened activity provided by multiple contractors and owners working in the same area at the same time resulted in the creation of many interesting circumstances for those who are continuing to benefit from increased water pressure.

SERA Architects PC supplied architectural services for the Lower Griswold parking lot. DPR Construction of Oregon, Inc.was the general contractor. Coffman Excavation, Inc., acting as a subcontractor to DPR Construction, Inc., performed a major portion of the earthwork. Tuefel Nursery, Inc. executed the landscape plan designed by Walker-Macy.

Construction began May 1st, 2000. Lower Griswold Parking Lot and associated roadway system was substantially complete on August 23, 2000. Substantial completion for the entire project was attained on October 7, 2000, one week ahead of schedule. Expected cost at project completion is $4,300,000.