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Category: Land Development

LandTechNews/BlogLand Development

Civil Engineering Land Development Design – Water and Sewer Systems

The life blood of a land development project is the availability of water and capability for sanitary waste disposal.  The availability of public water and sanitary sewer services greatly affects how civil engineers and land surveyors would propose to develop a parcel.

For example, in the City of Knoxville Zoning Regulations, the property area regulations for properties zoned R-1 (Section 2.1.1.E.5):

http://library.municode.com/HTML/11098/level4/APXBZORE_ARTIVSPDIRE_S2BADI_2.1REDI.html#APXBZORE_ARTIVSPDIRE_S2BADI_2.1REDI_2.1.1LODEREDI

a. For each house, and building accessory thereto, served by a sanitary sewer system, there shall be a lot area of not less than seven thousand five hundred (7,500) square feet.

c. For those dwellings and buildings accessory thereto not served by a sanitary sewer system there shall be a minimum lot area of twenty thousand (20,000) square feet per dwelling unit; however, a greater area may be required based on recommendations by the health department because of inadequate percolation.

Therefore, a one (1) acre parcel with sanitary sewer systems could be subdivided into approximately five (5) lots, but only two (2) lots without sewer service……less revenue producing parcels.

A review of the property is crucial prior to development, including a determination of water and sanitary sewer availability and zoning regulations.

If you have questions about developing your property, please contact LandTech using our website at: http://landtechco.com/home

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, East Tennessee Region, Knox County, Knoxville, Land Development, TN 0 Comments

Stormwater Management Design in the City of Knoxville

Due to increasing regulatory requirements, stormwater management is often a primary element of the civil engineering design process for land development projects. Important aspects of stormwater management requirements in the City of Knoxville are outlined in two primary sources:

1. The City of Knoxville Best Management Practices (BMP) Manual, found on the City’s website: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/engineering/bmp_manual/knoxvilleBMP.pdf

According to the BMP Manual:

The purpose of this manual is to establish minimum standards for the design and implementation of measures to prevent and control erosion, sediment, and other forms of stormwater pollution. The BMP Manual is intended primarily to assist developers, engineers, contractors, inspectors, and property owners in the selection and use of Best Management Practices (BMPs) for the design of new facilities.

2. The Knoxville Municipal Code, Part II, Chapter 22.5: http://library.municode.com/HTML/11098/level2/PTIICOOR_CH22.5ST.html#TOPTITLE

The stormwater management site development criteria includes stormwater detention pond requirements outlined in Section 22.5-23, and first flush water quality requirements outlined in Section 22.5-36.

http://library.municode.com/HTML/11098/level3/PTIICOOR_CH22.5ST_ARTIISIDECR.html#TOPTITLE

We’d be happy to discuss any questions you have about stormwater management for your project. For more information on LandTech and contact information, please visit our website here: http://landtechco.com/home

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, East Tennessee Region, Knoxville, Land Development, TN 0 Comments

Civil Engineers face changes to Stream and Wetland Regulations?

Impacts to streams and wetlands can be a serious regulatory challenge to civil engineers and other land development professionals, not only in Knoxville, but around the country. There have been recent court cases challenging EPA’s authority, with the result being a potential clarification of the term “waters of the United States”.

The EPA took a giant step toward finally defining which bodies of water are subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act last week, when it filed a draft rule with the White House regulatory czar designed to settle the confusion created in recent years by a series of court decisions.

The legal battles have centered on the definition and scope of a seemingly innocuous phrase — what exactly are “waters of the United States”?

Judges and regulators have wrestled over how to interpret the term in the absence of legislative action to clarify it. Now, the EPA is not only proposing a regulatory solution — which is not yet publicly available — but is also conducting a scientific review to accumulate evidence to back up the penultimate rule.

See more at: http://cdn.rollcall.com/news/epa_seeks_definition_of_bodies_of_water_for_clean_water_act-227853-1.html?popular=true&pos=oplyh&cdn_load=true&zkPrintable=1&nopagination=1

If you have any questions about local stream and wetland regulations, contact LandTech’s civil engineering staff for a discussion about your project. You can find our contact information on our website here: http://landtechco.com/home

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, Knox County, Knoxville, Land Development, TN 0 Comments

Civil engineering grading design

In many instances, the biggest variable cost for developing a site is grading. Grading is the construction process of altering existing ground surface elevations for producing roadways, parking lots, building pads and other site development features.

There are numerous economic factors civil engineers consider during the grading design process, including:

  1. Rock excavation can be very expensive, and areas of cut (lowering existing ground surface elevations) should be minimized in areas with rock.
  2. Grading volumes should be balanced between the amount of cut and fill (increasing existing ground surface elevations). Too much cut and soil will need to be hauled from the site; too much fill and soil will need to be hauled to the site. With high diesel fuel prices, the hauling expense may not be economically feasible for a development project.
  3. Areas with unsuitable soils (soils with insufficient strength or other undesirable properties to support the planned use) will have to be excavated, removed and replaced, driving up the construction cost for site development.

The LandTech civil engineering grading design process places an emphasis on minimizing rock excavation, minimizing cut and fill volumes, balancing cut and fill volumes, and if possible avoiding areas of the site with unsuitable soil.

We would be happy to discuss any grading design question you have about your site development project in the Knoxville or East Tennessee region.

For more information, visit our website: http://landtechco.com/home

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, Land Development 0 Comments

Knoxville-Knox County Metropolitan Planning Commission sees growth in residential apartment development

I am cautiously optimistic that the economy, and the real estate sector in particular, is beginning to recover. We at LandTech Engineering & Surveying have seen a significant increase in surveys done for residential and commercial retail clients during 2013. I was therefore pleased to learn that there is some objective support for my optimism. The Knoxville- Knox County MPC recently posted a news update that indicated that residential subdivision and building permit applications are showing a slow rise. However, the most immediate growth appears to be in apartment construction. As the MPC states, “If all apartment projects currently on the drawing board make it to construction, Knoxville will see an increase of more than 2,000 units in the next two years.” This is certainly good news! If you would like to read the artical, you can access it at the following link:

http://www.knoxmpc.org/news/2013/08_07_2013.htm

If you have need of any civil engineering, land surveying, land development or planning services, please go to our website at www.landtechco.com for more about our company and what we do or to find our contact information.

Mike Lewis East Tennessee Region, Knox County, Knoxville, Land Development 0 Comments

What is Erosion Control?

Land development design plans prepared by LandTech’s civil engineer primarily indicates the final site features to be installed, such as parking lots, sidewalks, and roads. However, there’s an important part of the design plan drawing set that’s not a final site feature, but is only implemented during the construction phase of the project……erosion and sediment control.

According to the Tennessee Department of Environment & Conservation (TDEC) :

“Construction activities near streams, rivers, and lakes have the potential to cause water pollution and stream degradation if erosion and sediment controls are not properly installed and maintained. In order to effectively reduce erosion and sedimentation impacts, Best Management Practices (BMP’s) must be designed, installed, and maintained during land disturbing activities.”

TDEC publishes an “Erosion & Sediment Control Handbook” used by developers, engineers, and contractors for the proper design, installation and maintenance of erosion control practices. The handbook can be downloaded in pdf format here:

http://www.tnepsc.org/TDEC_EandS_Handbook_2012_Edition4/TDEC%20EandS%20Handbook%204th%20Edition.pdf

Some localities may have additional erosion control requirements. For example, the City of Knoxville Stormwater Engineering Department publishes the “Knoxville BMP Manual” with guidance on preparing erosion control plans in their jurisdiction. The BMP manual can be downloaded in pdf format here:

http://www.cityofknoxville.org/engineering/bmp_manual/knoxvilleBMP.pdf

We’d love to discuss any questions you have about erosion control. Feel free to call us, or contact us on our website at: http://landtechco.com/contact_us

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, Land Development 0 Comments

So what’s the difference between civil engineering and land development design?

I guess the best way to differentiate these two topics:

  • Civil engineering is a subset of the entire engineering profession, such as electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, chemical engineering, aerospace engineering, etc.
  • Where land development design is a subset of civil engineering, such as geotechnical, environmental, water resources, etc.

A good overview of the tasks involved in civil engineering land development design is described in the City of Knoxville Engineering Department’s Land Development Manual here: http://www.cityofknoxville.org/engineering/ldmanual/KnoxvilleLDM.pdf

LandTech offers land development design services for residential, commercial, and industrial projects. Land development designs will typically include topographic / property boundary land surveys and mapping, erosion and sediment control, site layout planning and design, roadway plan and profiles, grading plans, stormwater management, domestic water and sanitary sewer utilities, Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plans (SWPPP) and associated permits, and layout for construction.

For more information about our land development design services, call or contact us using our company website: http://landtechco.com/contact_us

Jay Lewis Civil Engineering, Land Development 0 Comments

Tennessee cuts jobs in the State Local Planning Assistance Office

Governor Haslam’s administration has implemented staff cuts in the Tennessee Department of Economic and Community Development. The Local Planning Assistance Office will experience the brunt of these cuts. The LPAO was responsible for providing planning staff for small counties, cities, and towns that lack the resources to maintain their own planning staff. To cope with this change, perhaps many of these small planning bodies will decide to consolidate and share resources. The potential upside for development is that the jurisdictional boundaries between some planning bodies may be abolished, making the the planning process in such areas more uniform and streamlined.

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20110607/BUSINESS/306070050/TN-Economic-Community-Development-cut-58-jobs?odyssey=nav|head

Mike Lewis East Tennessee Region, Land Development, Land Surveying 0 Comments