NEORSD is guiding Cleveland and 61 surrounding communities through two significant wet weather issues – CSOs and stormwater – at a time when Northeast Ohio is losing population and gaining vacancy. NEORSD is approaching these issues with multi-benefit, multi-partner programs that provide maximum value for regional investment. This presentation focuses on Project Clean Lake – NEORSD’s 25-year, $3 billion program to address CSOs with an emphasis on optimizing the mix of cost-effective gray and green infrastructure to achieve a 98% level of CSO capture. Partners will discuss early action green infrastructure projects and NEORSD’s regional approach to stormwater management and CSO control.

1. SPOTLIGHT CITIES
CLEVELAN
D
Northeast Ohio

2. The U.S. Water Alliance has met the standards
and requirements of the Registered Continuing
Education Program. Credit earned on
completion of this program will be reported to
RCEP at RCEP.net. A certificate of completion
will be issued to each participant. As such, it
does not include content that may be deemed
or construed to be an approval or endorsement
by RCEP.

3. Purpose + learning objectives
• This presentation highlights wet weather
issues in Northeast Ohio and the
coordination between NEORSD,
Cleveland, and major philanthropic and
academic partners.
• Through this presentation, you will learn about:
– NEORSD’s CSO and stormwater programs
– Unique coordination necessary across stakeholders
– Remaining issues NEORSD and partners must address to
fully realize green infrastructure benefits

5. Kellie Rotunno, PE, BCEE
Director of Engineering & Construction
216.881.6600 x6400 / rotunnok@neorsd.org
Tweet @KellieRotunno
Terry Schwarz
Director, Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative
216.357.3426 / tschwarz@kent.edu
Lillian Kuri
Program Director
216.861.3810 / lkuri@clevefdn.org
Robert Brown
Director, Planning Commission
rbrown@city.cleveland.oh.us
Kyle Dreyfuss-Wells
Manager of Watershed Programs
216.881.6600 x6414 / dreyfuss-wellsk@neorsd.org
NEORSD map graphics courtesy of Strand and Human Nature

6. Urban Water Sustainability
Leadership Conference
Cincinnati, Ohio
October 15, 2012

7. Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District

8. Governance
• Created in 1972 by Court Order
• Political subdivision of Ohio
• Governed by seven Trustees
• Servicing all or part of 62 member
communities, >1 million customers
• We don’t own parks, or control zoning

9. Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District
312 miles 3,107 miles
Total length of District-owned Total length of locally-owned sewers
sewers and interceptors and interceptors

10. The Sewer District: COMBINED SEWER OVERFLOW CONTROL
Project Clean Lake

11. CSO Level of Control – Baseline Conditions (2005)

12. CSO Level of Control – Proposed Plan (2005)

13. Chronology of Level of Control
2005

14. Chronology of Level of Control
2005 2011

15. Project Clean Lake projects
Shoreline Euclid Creek
STORAGE TUNNEL
and Dugway
Westerly STORAGE TUNNELS
CSO
STORAGE
TUNNEL
Tunnel Doan
Valley $70
$198
$70
$198
Dewatering
PUMP STATION
STORAGE
TUNNEL
25yrs
Million
Million
18,000 feet pump station, 240 feet$3B
• Cavern Tunnel Systems
Seven CSO style long, 24’ inside diameter,
deep,
160 MGD firm capacity tunnel, 200’ deep
segmentally lined rock
Big Creek – 21 total miles
• Sized to emptyTBM system in 24 hours
– 17 to 24 tunnel
Herrenknechtfeet wide
CSO Southerly • Remotelyconsolidation and relief sewers
Includes to 200 feet undergroundWWTP
STORAGE TUNNEL STORAGE TUNNEL – 100 operated from Easterly
along with associated structures
• Schedule: January 2012 - December 2015
April 2011-April 2015

16. Components of the Long-Term Control Plan

17. The Sewer District: GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
Project Clean Lake
is greener

18. Components of the Long-Term Control Plan

19. CSO Level of Control – Consent Decree
2005 2011

20. USEPA’s 10 National
Green Infrastructure Partners
• Austin
• Boston
• Cleveland (NEORSD)
• Denver
• Jacksonville
• Kansas City
• Los Angeles
• Puyallup, Wash.
• Syracuse
• Washington, D.C.
20

21. The Sewer District: GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
CSO Reduction – How many
stormwater gallons does it take?

22. CSO Catchments: Stormwater/CSO Ratios

23. Assessment of Benefits

24. Assessment of Benefits

25. Assessment of Benefits

26. Examples of Co-Benefits from Green Infrastructure

27. NORTHEAST OHIO REGIONAL “GREEN LEAVE BEHIND”
Putting the “Green” into “Gray”

28. Traditional “Gray” Infrastructure Projects
Provide Opportunities to Repurpose Vacant
Land

29. Proposed Dugway Storage Tunnel shaft location -
proximity to distressed properties
Property
DWIRS Dugway West
Interceptor Relief
Required
Sewer for DST Dugway
Construction
Storage
Tunnel
DVT Doan Valley
Storage Tunnel
DVRS Doan Valley
Relief Sewer
29

30. Typical shaft construction sites
focus on infrastructure
improvements only During Construction
After Construction
30

31. Opportunity to enhance typical
sewer project through strategic
partnerships

32. Key Take Away Points
• Ease of Green Infrastructure implementation
varies based upon wastewater/stormwater
governance
• Not all stormwater gallons deliver equivalent
CSO Control
• Mind your “Numerators” and “Denominators”
when assessing costs
• Lifecycle costs are important to understand,
but so are co-benefits of Green
Infrastructure
• Even “Gray Infrastructure” can be Green

33. Regional Local
Vision Champions
Catalyst for
Partners
Change

34. Number of people leaving Cleveland
Based on current trends
9,568 a year
797 a month
184 a week
26 a day
1.2 an hour

35. CLEVELAND VACANCY
• About 15,000 vacant buildings
• Over 3,600 acres of vacant land
• 1,000 houses demolished annually =
120 acres of additional vacant land

36. Vacant Properties

37. Land Bank Properties

43. VACANT LAND STRATEGIES
City-Wide
1. Neighborhood stabilization / holding strategies
2. Green Infrastructure
• Green space network
• Ecosystem restoration, stormwater
management
• Environmental remediation
3. Productive Landscapes

46. Re-Imagining Cleveland Projects
56 projects totaling 15 acres of vacant land

47. Neighborhood-scale riparian strategy

48. GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
Neighborhood-scale riparian strategy

49. ighborhood-scale headwaters strategy

50. ighborhood-scale headwaters strategy

51. eighborhood-scale hybrid strategy

52. eighborhood-scale hybrid strategy

61. Proposed Deep Tunnels

62. CONSENT DECREE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE
Components
Substitute
Green for Gray
44 million gallons
• Appendix 3: 44
MG of additional
REMAINING CSO control
through green
infrastructure
• Appendix 4:
Opportunity to
GRAY CAPTURE
4,037 million gallons replace gray
with green
infrastructure

63. LILLIAN KURI
PROGRAM DIRECTOR, CLEVELAND FOUNDATION

64. NEW PARTNERSHIPS,
NEW OPPORTUNITIES
FOR ALIGNMENT
= SYSTEMS CHANGE,
LEVERAGE AND IMPACT

65. • WHO WE ARE
– Strategic Initiatives: focused on Greater
Cleveland’s Vital Issues
• Grants in these areas are generally made to
our long-term partners with goal of creating
significant, widespread impact
• WHY PHILANTHROPY SHOULD BE
INVOLVED?
• A NEW WAY OF WORKING
TOGETHER

66. • 5 areas of investment 2012-2013
– The New Table
– Connecting Gray And Green
– Leveraging The Green Infrastructure
– Leveraging The Spend (Jobs)
– Continuous Learning
• DISCLAIMER: YOU CANT DO THIS KIND OF WORK
WITHOUT LEADERSHIP, STRONG PARTNERS AND WITHOUT
TAKING RISKS

67. Reimagining &
Reshaping
Cleveland
Urban Water Sustainability
Leadership Conference 2012

68. America’s 5 th Largest City (1920)

69. Cleveland’s National Population Rank
1920: 5 th
1950: 7 th 914,808
1970: 10 th
1980: 18 th
1990: 23 rd
2000: 33 rd
2010: 45 th 396,815
Cleveland Metro Area (CSA) Rank in 2010:
15 th

70. We’ve had a few bad breaks!
“Burn on Big River” (1969)

71. 39,761 foreclosures (2006-2011)

72. 15,000 Vacant Buildings

73. 6,000 Demolitions 2007-2011

74. 20,000 “Vacated” Lots
over 10,000 in City Land Bank

75. Most of Cleveland’s vacant lots are “scattered”

76. Cleveland’s
Future…..
Back to the
garden?

77. No!
The vision
presented in
Cleveland’s
comprehensive
plan is decidedly
“urban.”

78. … ..a city with densely built, mixed-use,
walkable neighborhoods connected by
greenways and complemented by urban
gardens, urban farms and open space
amenities
w
e ..
n
e n…
h o
T i
v is

79. Sustainable Open Space
Re-Use Options
• Urban Agriculture
• Stormwater Management
• Stabilization/ Enhancement
• Soil Remediation
• Yard Expansion
• Greenways/Bikeways
• Alternative Energy

81. Community Gardens (over 230)

82. Vineyards!

83. Urban Farms
6-acre inner-city site farmed by local refugee population

84. Urban Agriculture Innovation Zone
The City of Cleveland and a
neighborhood organization
are establishing a 26-acre
agricultural zone in the
city’s most depressed
neighborhood.
USDA and OSU are
providing $840,000 for
multi-year program to train
and employ
35 disadvantaged residents
on 6-acre site

85. “ Evergreen” Greenhouse
Project
The City has assembled land
for development of a 5-acre,
worker-owned greenhouse on
vacant land in one of
Cleveland’s most distressed
and impoverished
neighborhoods.

88. Stormwater Management

89. In response to an EPA
mandate to reduce combined
sewer overflows, the
Northeast Ohio Regional
Sewer District anticipates
investing more than $80
million in “green
infrastructure” projects in
Cleveland.

90. Greenways & Recreation
Morgana rails-to-trails project (Slavic Village)

91. Complete Streets / Green Streets
• Approved by Cleveland City Council on
September 19, 2011
• Effective January 1, 2012

92. Vision
Complete & Green
The City of Cleveland
is committed to the
creation of a network
of Complete and Green Streets
that will improve the
economic, environmental and
social well-being of its citizens.

93. Applications
Complete & Green
• New Construction
• Reconstruction
• Rehabilitation
• Streetscape Enhancements

94. Applications (cont.)
• Resurfacing
– limited to minimal impact
improvements that do not affect sub-
base, curbs and sidewalks or other
elements outside the scope of a
resurfacing project.
– may include paint re-striping, sharrows,
signage for cyclists or pedestrians and
the use of recycled asphalt.

95. Exemptions
including but not limited to the following:
 areas where bicyclists and pedestrians are
prohibited by law, provided that alternative
facilities or accommodations for
pedestrians/cyclists are provided within the
same transportation corridor;
 financial hardship to the project sponsor
 Financial hardship exists when
compliance with Complete & Green
policies and guidelines constitutes a
minimum of twenty (20) per cent of
the total project cost, not to exceed
$1 million

96. Maintenance
– All projects approved under the Complete
& Green Streets policy will include
provisions for ongoing maintenance.
– A Life Cycle cost analysis may be used to
determine the feasibility of the
improvements.
– Alternative maintenance arrangements
may be utilized to reduce the costs to the
City for ongoing maintenance, such as
maintenance agreements with adjacent
property owners.

97. Current Applications of Green
Infrastructure
Installation of permeable
pavement at the Morgana
Athletic Complex

98. Permeable Pavement
Current Applications:
Gordon Square Arts District Parking Lot, Kennedy Parking Lot,
and Morgana Lot.
Kennedy Parking Lot Gordon Square: W 65th
and Detroit
Future Application: Permeable Pavers
Zone Recreation Center, Fall 2011

99. Bio-Retention
• Zone Recreation Center, Green
Space Improvements (Fall 2011)
• Collinwood Recreation Center
(Summer 2011)
Current Flooding Conditions Bio-Retention

100. Tree Planting, Greening
Tree-lawns & Medians
Euclid
Corridor:
1,500
Trees

101. Current Green Infrastructure Locations: Fleet Avenue Green
Street Retrofit

102. Fleet Avenue Reconstruction/Green
Infrastructure Project
Rendering provided by Human Nature, Inc., 2012
Fleet Avenue Today Fleet Avenue
“Tomorrow”

103. Fleet Avenue Reconstruction/Green Green
Fleet Avenue
Infrastructure Project Street
•Green and complete
streets project in
partnership with City
of Cleveland
•NEORSD contributing
$1M to design and
construction of green
features
•Will control
Rendering provided by Human Nature, Inc., 2012
approximately 1
million gallons of CSO

104. The Sewer District: REGIONAL STORMWATER MANAGEMENT
Flooding, erosion,
and water quality

105. Stormwater Service Area

106. Impervious Surfaces

107. Stormwater: Quantity Problems
Middleburg Heights/Brook Park,
Ohio along Abrams Creek

108. Streambank erosion on Mill Creek
threatens Warner Road
110
in Garfield Heights, Ohio

109. Debris along Dugway Brook,
Cleveland Heights, Ohio
111

110. Streambank erosion
along Stickney
Creek

111. Streambank Erosion
Baldwin Creek, August 2011

112. Regional Stormwater
Management Program
• Estimated revenue of $38M/year from
new impervious surface fee
– Inspection and Maintenance
– Construction
– Partner support
• Stormwater Fee Credits recognize on-site
Stormwater Control Measures
– Quantity Credit
– Quality Credit
– Education Credit
– Individual Residential Credit

113. We will perform
inspection and
maintenance

114. We will build projects

115. Stream Restoration and Land
Preservation
• Ohio EPA’s Water Resource Restoration
Sponsor Program (WRRSP)
– 22 projects from 2004 to 2012
– $31 million available through NEORSD
participation
• Benefits to Regional Stormwater System
– Stormwater management
– Stream bank stabilization
– Aquatic habitat improvement & preservation

116. Water Resource Restoration
Sponsor Program (WRRSP)
projects

117. Water Resource Restoration
Sponsor Program (WRRSP)
projects

118. Stream Restoration: Pre-restoration flooding
West Creek Confluence
• Restoration of 10 acres of valuable
floodplain at the confluence of West
Creek and the lower Cuyahoga River
• Pre-Site conditions
– Three buildings occupy the property
– 850 ft of straightened West Creek
channel

120. West Creek Confluence

121. Water Resource Restoration
Sponsor Program (WRRSP)
projects

122. Tinkers Creek Wetland

123. Water Resource Restoration
Sponsor Program (WRRSP)
projects

124. Upper Cuyahoga Bog

125. WRRSP by the numbers
$31 million
facilitated since 2005

126. WRRSP by the numbers
2,500 acres
of preserved property, including 600 acres of
high quality wetland

127. WRRSP by the numbers
7 dams
removed

128. WRRSP by the numbers
12 miles
of protected streams

129. WRRSP by the numbers
21,000 feet
of restored streams

130. PARTNER SUPPORT
Grant programs
• Small Scale Stormwater
Demonstration Project Grants
• Watershed Operating Support Grants

131. Small Scale Stormwater
Demonstration Grant
• 31 projects since 2009
• 11 communities

132. Small Scale Stormwater
Demonstration Grant
• $435,712 contributed for:
– Bioretention
– Riparian Zone Restoration
– Rain Gardens
– Stormwater Collection & Urban
Agriculture Field Irrigation Systems
– Parking Lot Retrofits

133. Small-scale stormwater
demonstration projects

134. Small-scale stormwater
demonstration projects

135. Shaker
Parklands
Bioswale
before

136. Shaker Parklands Bioswale

137. Small-scale stormwater
demonstration projects

138. Grace Lutheran Church Rain Garden
(3 downspouts disconnected)

139. Small-scale stormwater
demonstration projects

140. Milligan Avenue
Riparian Zone Project

141. WATERSHEDS + WATERSHED GROUPS
$680,000 in operating support since ‘09