Project to lessen erosion in Woods

An effort to reduce storm water runoff in Hitchcock Woods is under way.

Representatives with Woolpert Inc. and Willing Construction were out on Park Avenue this week, beginning the City of Aiken's Green Infrastructure Project.

The project is expected to greatly lessen the amount of storm water drained into Hitchcock's Sand River canyon. The problem has plagued the City for decades, causing significant erosion in Hitchcock Woods. The City has contracted with the H.G. Reynolds construction company for the project.

Workers will install bioretention ponds and rain gardens in parkways and place pervious concrete and asphalt in downtown streets, all of which will absorb larger amounts of rainfall, officials said.

City Public Works Director Larry Morris said work will initially be done along Park Avenue, Barnwell Avenue, Union Street and near the Newberry Street Festival Site. A soil mixture that will treat water, improving its quality, will also be installed in parkways, he said.

The project is being paid for with a $3.3 million federal grant from the Department of Health and Environmental Control under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Clemson University professor Dr. Gene Eidson and his students will head up the project and monitor its success.

The project's team also includes the City, the South Carolina Department of Transportation, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and DHEC.

David Willing, owner of Willing Construction, said he and his crew began digging out the retention ponds last week.

"This is going to catch a lot of water and keep it from going into Hitchcock," he said.

Scott Hildebrand, an engineer with Woolpert Inc., said the project has two goals: Controlling the storm water levels and also monitoring water quality.

He said the water quality will be monitored with bioretention cells where the water will be collected and later examined. He said the project will take about six months to complete.

A ground-breaking ceremony for the project will be held on Park Avenue in front of the Aiken County Courthouse next month.

Contact April Bailey at abailey@aikenstandard.com.