Every year, ACEC Washington celebrates the outstanding contributions of engineers, design professionals, and clients with their Engineering Excellence Awards and Gala. These prestigious awards recognize innovative projects that elevate the surrounding communities, bringing the contributions of engineering firms into focus for businesses, clients, and media.
This year, Mead & Hunt was selected to receive a Gold award in the Social, Economic, and Sustainable Design Consideration category for the Local Track at the 2020 ACEC Washington Engineering Excellence Awards Banquet for our Fish Passage and Culvert Design project for the City of Roslyn, WA.
The project comprised the design of an innovative new custom concrete box culvert to alleviate flooding issues. The previous undersized culverts couldn’t handle flood flows, leading to road damage and residential flooding. The design team took the City’s needs into consideration, overcoming several design challenges to provide a new culvert that reduces maintenance costs and protects property during storms.
While the purpose of the new culvert was primarily flood control, habitat restoration drove much of the design. The culvert now allows fish to pass through it into Crystal Creek, which is protected for certain species of salmon, trout and char. This increased habitat connectivity within the Crystal Creek watershed enhances the surrounding natural environment. The environmental benefits gained from the new culvert reveal how a thoughtful and thorough design process can reap multifaceted benefits.
According to Myke Woodwell, Director of Public Works for the City of Roslyn,
“Thanks to the team’s time and extra effort, this project had a great end result; even the fish were back to check it out the following day!”
Congratulations to the project team! Ultimately, your work helped The City of Roslyn create a better community for its citizens.
