The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was accepted into law in 1990. In the decades since, commercial properties have been subject to evolving regulations that help make spaces more accessible by those with disabilities. Not only is compliance useful to both future employees and clients, but it's also a legal requirement in many cases.

With that said, implementing ADA pathways and accommodations into your engineering project goes beyond scanning the law books. It's important that ADA designs are functional, cost-effective, and easy to maintain. To achieve these goals, developers, architects, and contractors should incorporate these best practices into their municipal and institutional engineering projects.

1. Ensure Close Coordination Between the Owner and Design Team
Achieving ADA compliance without going over budget or overshadowing other design goals is difficult, but it's made easier when the owner and the design team work closely together.
Open lines of communication offer countless benefits for design projects, but they're especially important when dealing with ADA regulations, which may require changes in layout, among other accommodations, to make room for pathways and necessary clearance.

In the case of ADA compliance, accessibility is best achieved by an owner who knows the legal requirements that need to be met and a design team that knows the engineering specifications necessary to get there. The project owner should set out clear expectations for the level of accessibility, and the design team should offer feedback on how to best achieve it within the scope of the project.

2. Clearly Delineate Planned ADA-Compliant Pathways
Delivering clearly marked plans upfront is critical to achieving ADA compliance without going over budget or delaying the project. Ideally, accessibility will be addressed from day one in the planning phase — and not worked in as an afterthought. The latter is an all-too-common mistake that is sure to lead to sacrifices and/or added costs in the final stages.

Incorporating ADA compliance into project planning from the beginning means clearly delineating all areas, objects, and pathways that need to meet accessibility requirements and communicating these with the contractor. Additional clarification over the level of accessibility needed in each marked area should also be provided sooner rather than later so no assumptions are made.

3. Consider All Options to Reduce Costs and Maintenance
One of the major benefits of prioritizing open communication early on in the project is the freedom to discuss design options that achieve accessibility in different ways. This is when a well-informed project owner will prove valuable, as knowing the level of accessibility required in each area is paramount to making the best design choices.

For example, if you tell your contractor that disabled individuals need to be able to safely make it from the first floor to the second floor, this could mean the simple addition of a handrail on the stairs, a more space-consuming addition of a tiered ramp, or even the costly addition of an elevator.

Aside from identifying accessibility accommodations that fit into your project's budget, you also need to consider future maintenance.

A handrail does not impact maintenance at all, indoors or out. However, an exterior ramp leading to the front entrance will require additional maintenance, especially during periods of rain and snow when it needs to be kept clear of ice and obstructions. If you're looking at an elevator, that requires a great deal of licensure and maintenance just to keep it operating.

4. Recognize Where Accessibility Isn't Necessary
Often, project owners get overwhelmed with ADA compliance requirements because they interpret them as a mandate to make every single area, object, and pathway completely accessible. In reality, you don't need to make every element of the entire building compliant; you just need to make accommodations where needed to ensure that those with disabilities can safely navigate the premises like anyone else.

In other words, if you have five staircases, you probably don't need every single one to have an accessible ramp. Likewise, if you have multiple entrances to your building, you may only need to make accommodations at one or two of them.

Depending on regulations, and the level of accommodation you find necessary beyond those regulations, you might have a single dedicated ADA entrance or pathway between floors and signage at all non-compliant staircases to direct those with disabilities to the nearest accessible pathway.

5. Design Built-In Tolerances to Avoid Rework
When accommodating those with disabilities, it's about more than how people with a wheelchair will get to the second floor or how those with vision impairment will navigate the premises. One of the aspects that makes achieving accessibility so difficult is the sheer diversity of the disabled community.

As regulations try to keep up with this diversity, you'll also find that they continue to evolve and the requirements change from year to year. All of this means that the best way to future-proof your projects and avoid rework is to design for tolerances for the future. This is best achieved by aiming not for the maximum or minimum specifications in an ADA-established range, but for the middle to allow for the inevitable variances that occur in construction as well as the possibility of future adjustments in tolerance allowances.

6. Collect Certifications for Areas That Must Be Compliant
The last step in achieving ADA compliance is collecting certifications for each area that is required to be compliant. Depending on the project and your locale, you may need to require this certification from the construction team or you may have to submit for certification directly by providing post-construction verification.

In any case, once you have achieved ADA compliance, displaying proper signage and maintaining these pathways is an ongoing process, but one that will prove well worth it as you open the doors to the larger community.

Do you need further assistance in ensuring that your next project is ADA compliant, without going over budget or overshadowing your other design goals? Consult Engineering Surveys & Services for more information.


Image Credits: Pixabay @Creative Commons

Rainfall, snowmelt, and torrential weather all lead to an abundance of water. In natural areas, this water would be absorbed into the ground and gradually dispersed over foliage, but in communities where roadways, sidewalks, homes, and other structures exist, this water has to go somewhere else. Here's how civil engineers, planners, and project managers are re-thinking stormwater management to reduce costs and improve outcomes.


The Best Stormwater Management Practices

Traditionally, stormwater is directed to a drainage system under roadways, but these systems are far from flawless. It just takes one clogged drain for roads to begin flooding, causing hazardous driving conditions and potentially millions of dollars in property damage. Even without a clogged drain, it's possible for systems to become overwhelmed and backed up when the rate of runoff exceeds the system's capacity.

Instead of building bigger drainage systems, communities are shifting away from impervious areas that contribute to stormwater management complications and instead are adopting low-impact designs that enable stormwater to almost manage itself. As the EPA explains, low-impact development (LID) is a concept that combines systems and techniques designed to mimic natural water filtration and evaporation. LID helps protect the quality of water sources and local aquatic habitats. 

The movement towards low-impact design won't only help prevent flooding and related issues, but it can also keep waterways cleaner and cut maintenance costs. Here's a closer look at all the advantages LID offers.


Reducing Impervious Areas in Design Reduces Stormwater

One of the biggest contributors to community flooding is impervious surfaces, which include roads, buildings, developments, and parking lots. These surfaces cannot absorb water like the natural landscape that they replaced, meaning standing water becomes the norm in rainy conditions.

To manage that standing water, civil engineers install drainage systems to carry water off of impervious surfaces and into designated areas like rivers, ponds, and lakes. The issue is that, with so much water being re-directed into drainage systems in times of heavy rainfall, they often reach capacity and flood. Along the way, the drainage system itself can become blocked or clogged, leading to flooding in the exact areas the system was trying to keep dry, like neighborhood streets.

Through the decades, explosive growth — especially in urban areas like Atlanta and Los Angeles — has demonstrated how the replacement of natural landscape with impervious areas leads to more flooding events. However, it's becoming clear that the answer is not a more robust drainage system, like the L.A. "river," but rather a shift in engineering and design methodology that helps maintain landscapes that drain naturally.

The equation is simple: By reducing the impervious areas in a community, and thereby maintaining more landscape that can drain itself, communities will have less stormwater to manage overall. Beyond simplicity, this results in reduced costs, less flooding, and even cleaner waterways. After all, when the landscape is able to absorb rainfall at the source, rather than directing it through drains where water becomes polluted with debris, community water remains cleaner.


Disconnected Impervious Areas Reduce Management Costs

In today's world, it's hard to imagine a community with no impervious areas. After all, the mere presence of buildings leads to the creation of impervious areas, and safe roadways take priority over reducing stormwater. Still, it is possible to reduce management costs by not only trying to reduce impervious surface area overall but by being mindful of their placement through distributed infrastructure.

For example, rather than a sprawling cityscape of uninterrupted parking lots, the combination of distributed infrastructure and low-impact design encourages disconnected impervious areas that maintain the landscape in between to enable some natural drainage. The implementation of planned landscaping, especially in and around housing developments, can serve a similar purpose.
Once city leaders, managers, and planners connect, civil engineers can get them thinking about how the preservation of natural landscape can support drainage systems (and vice versa), and low-impact design becomes much more achievable.


Low-Impact Design Improves Ecosystems

Low-impact design has benefits that go far beyond stormwater management. The preservation of green space provides air purification, species habitat, and gathering places for citizens. LID also creates a cycle of savings, freeing up more capital to be invested in other areas of the city.
With simpler drainage systems and fewer adverse events (i.e., floods), the money a town saves in maintenance can be re-directed to meaningful projects like parks and recreation improvements, outreach programs, and new infrastructure for schools and businesses.


Achieving Low-Impact Design in Communities

With all the benefits of low-impact design in mind, it's clear that this is the direction the EPA and other agencies are encouraging developers and civil engineers to take. However, that doesn't mean change will come easily.

In reality, implementing low-impact design practices is easiest in new developments and, while this can begin at the neighborhood scale, the small towns across the United States that are experiencing explosive growth are the most likely to implement them. For these communities, proactively leveraging low-impact design as their towns grow into suburbs and cities is the smartest path forward.

For existing urban areas, change will be harder. Retrofitting neighborhoods to incorporate low-impact design isn't easy, but it is possible. As communities continue to grow and develop, low-impact design principles are expected to make their way into standard practices, but it's going to take a collaboration of civil engineers, planners, and local directors for to achieve the most effective results.

As the EPA suggests, now is the time for stormwater agencies to get in touch with their local parks agencies and work together to find a way forward in implementing low-impact design, especially in areas where so much development is set to take place. With best practices laid out, low-impact design has the potential to build better, safer, and cleaner communities.

Engineering Surveys & Services has helped countless communities on their quest to implement low-impact design throughout emerging developments, old neighborhoods, and bustling business districts. If you would like more information on implementing low-impact design, we can help. Reach out to us today and take the first step toward being a LID community!


Short Title: Reducing Stormwater Management Costs

Teaser: Learn how low-impact design can reduce stormwater management costs.
Summary: Rainfall, snowmelt, and torrential weather all lead to an abundance of water. In natural areas, this water would be absorbed into the ground and gradually dispersed over foliage, but in communities where roadways, sidewalks, homes, and other structures persist, this water has to go somewhere else. As a result, developers are re-thinking stormwater management to reduce costs and improve outcomes.


Image Credits: Unsplash @ Creative Commons

November 2nd 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm

Please join the development team to discuss the proposed rezoning of the Petro-Mart located at 500 N. College Avenue.

​Rezoning to a Planned-Development would allow for Petro-Mart to be updated, to expand the convenience store to include staple grocery items, modernize environmental controls, and improve vehicle circulation near the Paris Road and College Avenue intersection.

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The COVID-19 pandemic changed the way we live, work, and play, and even as vaccines become standard and life begins to return to normal, some changes are permanent. In many ways, the pandemic ushered in changes that were already coming — like the influx of remote work and the convenience of curbside pickup. As we look ahead, understanding how these changes will impact infrastructure needs will help build better communities for the future. While it's unlikely that widespread changes in infrastructure design will be mandated, developers are likely to want to make them — with the following being some key examples of how communities may look different.


New infrastructure will be built to accommodate the sustained popularity of curbside pickup

Long before the days of the pandemic, consumers were enthusiastically embracing the convenience of low-touch processes, like doorstep deliveries and curbside order pickup. The arrival of the pandemic helped rapidly accelerate the adoption of these services — and they're here to stay. Right now, curbside pickup is very much in its infancy. So, to accommodate the growing implementation and use of curbside pickup, stores will need to build new infrastructure. Beyond reserved parking spaces with a sign saying "call us," stores will realize a need for branded kiosks, self-service locker systems, and other developments that will make the customer experience more enjoyable.


With more working from home, parking lots will be smaller

While we might need to make room for curbside pickup at restaurants and stores, parking lots at office buildings will likely get smaller thanks to the increased number of people working remotely. It's been predicted that 70% of the workforce will be working remotely at least part of the time, representing a "hybrid" work schedule, and some will remain completely remote. The technological implications of moving to hybrid and remote work are still being debated, but the infrastructure accommodations are much clearer: With fewer people heading to the office each day, commercial lots won't need to dedicate as much room to parking spaces.


At the office, a reversal of communal trends may take place

Prior to the pandemic, many offices were moving towards the modern trend of minimalism and communal property. Countless businesses ditched cubicles and assigned desks to make room for comfortable seating around shared tables and collaborative work areas. However, beyond the potential need for continued social distancing and limiting high-touch surfaces, a hybrid workforce means changes are coming. Post-COVID, office infrastructure is likely to implement more physical barriers, such as glass screens, between customers and workers. We may also see collaborative work spaces take a step back towards dedicated desk areas. More than likely, though, the focus on collaboration will move away from face-to-face meetings. Instead, rooms that allow remote and on-site workers to interact in new ways, such as with the use of virtual and augmented reality, will likely take center-stage.


Store and restaurant designs will seek to limit dwell time

Gone are the days when stores used to try to keep customers inside for as long as possible through strategic product placement and layout. Aside from the consumer focus on speed and convenience, which has helped make online and curbside ordering so popular, the post-COVID lifestyle will likely call for innovations in store and restaurant design. Before the pandemic, some fast-food chains like Chile's and Applebee's were already using kiosks to allow diners to order without going to the counter or while sitting down at their table. Beyond the implementation of self-service systems, which limit interaction and can reduce staffing needs, restaurants are also likely to re-think layouts. The expansion to patios and outdoor areas is here to stay, and the addition of walkup windows is likely to limit the need for entry. Inside stores, a similar trend can be expected, but it will involve more than boosting the number of self-service checkouts. Amazon's revolutionary "cashier less" store design may become the new normal as other brands begin implementing their own versions of the technology, even in bits and pieces.


Innovations in healthcare facilities will accommodate quick and easy booster shots

With the likelihood that booster shots will become standard, already strained healthcare facilities will need to be upgraded and expanded. Pharmacy chains and other outlets that are offering vaccines will also have the need for new infrastructure to accommodate demand. Vaccine distribution infrastructure will likely come in the form of drive-thru and drive-up facilities, which enable a quick in-and-out process that reduces interaction time and touch points. A check-in kiosk, for example, can identify the patient in the system to direct the appropriate type of booster shot, and the same facilities can be used for administering other vaccines, too. Healthcare facilities, in general, are expected to require new infrastructure in light of concerns and shortcomings revealed throughout the pandemic. For instance, hospitals are likely to invest in designs that allow for quick resource deployment or expansion to accommodate for surges in demand, while being more robust than the pop-up tents many had to turn to during the height of the pandemic. Are you interested in learning more about post-COVID developments and innovations in construction and civil engineering? Consult Engineering Surveys & Services for more information. 


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Image Credits: QRSMagazine @Creative Commons

​The kind of construction we're seeing post-COVID-19 looks very different from pre-pandemic construction; delays in supplies, staff shortages, and designing for a post-pandemic world have all left their mark. But one area of construction that can be altered to fit the needs of the community is the construction of assisted living communities. COVID-19 has been particularly harmful for some of the most vulnerable people in our society, especially seniors and other members of assisted living facilities, and our construction practices can and must reflect what we've learned about fostering safer environments.

What will post-COVID-19 construction of assisted living communities look like, and how can assisted living projects change to create safer and more functional environments? In this article, we'll explore the future of these vital communities. While civil engineers can’t easily address many of the issues that have affected assisted living communities during the COVID-19 pandemic, what they can do is consider what design features can be put in place to make assisted living communities safer.

1. Assisted Living Communities Should Be Easily Accessible for Vehicles and People.
Designing and building effective transport networks, including roads suitable for heavy goods vehicles, means assisted living communities are more easily able to:

• Transfer critically ill patients to hospitals when appropriate.
• Receive shipments of PPE and other supplies.
• Allow families to safely visit or take residents home when appropriate.
  
  

Creating safe ways to receive goods that minimize infection spread could be critical, too. Parking facilities that allow people to exit their cars while maintaining a suitable distance from other visitors or staff may also help.

2. Safer Walkways Inside and Out
We have learned much about the importance of social distancing to protect against the transmission of COVID-19 and other illnesses. It makes sense, then, to create spaces that allow them to walk down corridors or along pathways without having to squeeze past other residents, visitors, or staff. This may mean that  design teams have to consider revising designs that use narrow corridors to save space or that fail to prioritize safe, outdoor connections between buildings.

3. Creating Communities 
Keeping seniors safe doesn’t mean isolating them further. In fact, that only compounds the problem, as the impact of loneliness and isolation on mental health cannot be overstated. An alternative to this is to create communities of small campuses that are all connected safely — a type of senior village where residents can come together when it’s safe to do so, but return to comfortable, distanced, and safe lodgings whenever they need or want to. This model would move away from shared rooms in a traditional nursing home-style building to a series of small neighborhoods connected to decentralized dining hubs, healthcare centers, and other essentials and utilities.

4. Embracing Alternative Materials
Designers of assisted-living communities can also consider moving away from traditional construction materials to those that are easier to clean or are naturally resistant to pathogens such as viruses. Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine shows that the virus responsible for COVID-19 can survive for up to three days on stainless steel and plastic. On alternative surfaces, such as copper, the virus dies after four hours. Copper, bronze, and brass have natural antimicrobial properties, helping limit not only the spread of coronaviruses but other potentially dangerous pathogens such as E. coli. Other options include antimicrobial paints and coatings for repeated touch points such as door handles. These finishes create surfaces so abrasive at a microscopic level that they literally rip pathogens apart.

Of course, civil engineers and architects have to consider cost and weight when looking at alternative materials. Hopefully, as research continues into the best ways of making living areas more resilient to infection, more alternatives will become available for anyone designing and planning assisted living communities. In the meantime, civil engineers can take the time to look at the reasons viral infection was so prevalent within senior living communities. In doing so, they can create life-saving solutions for new assisted living neighborhoods to ensure those issues aren’t replicated in the future.

Consult Engineering Surveys & Services for more information on the transforming world of post-COVID-19 construction for assisted living and beyond.

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Image Credits: Freepik @Creative Commons

​Sustainability is no longer a buzzword, but a serious consideration across a broad spectrum of industries — including construction and civil engineering. Sustainable site planning and sustainable design of projects is a major concern for many civil engineers, with a good number of them leading the charge when it comes to breaking ties with the traditional.

Current challenges include the conservation of local wildlife or protected species of plants, making buildings or communities healthier, and rendering towns and cities viable for all citizens — not just those who drive cars. So, how exactly are our forward-thinking civil engineering teams embracing sustainable design as we move into the future? Let’s explore five trends in sustainable site planning that will only continue to grow.

1. Sustainable Site Selection
Sustainable site planning starts with a site selection process that’s kind to the environment, the local community, and everyone who is going to work on the site. Ensure that construction won’t encroach on protected areas. Check for large bodies of water and decide if it will be safe and sustainable to provide buffers for these, or if the potential environmental impact of dealing with these will be too high. Avoid building across green fields, which may be hot spots for biodiversity. Also, consider the transport links. While people are working on-site, how easy will it be for them to get there, and are there green options for transport available? Sustainably-minded civil engineers start by choosing a site that’s going to ensure their project has a low carbon footprint while providing the necessary benefits to the local community.

2. Alternate Mobility Community Planning
Streets are no longer just for cars. They’re for whole communities, and modern civil engineering teams are taking that into account when community planning or creating utilities for towns and cities. Planning concepts like Complete Streets encourage the thought process that pedestrians, joggers, cyclists, and people with a range of physical abilities all have the same right to enjoy their living space as those with cars.

This way of thinking has led to a focus on safety, including the introduction of safer, narrower roads with better crossing facilities. Accessibility is also increasing, with lower curbs often installed as standard, plus additions like tactile paving slabs to indicate crossing areas. Civil engineers are also including more footpaths to access green spaces such as parks and gardens. Encouraging people to leave the car at home is healthy not only on an individual level but for the local and wider community, too.

3. Focus on Green Spaces
Civil engineers might work with conservationists and landscapers from an early stage in projects, in order to either create or preserve green spaces around buildings and communities. Not only are green spaces attractive and great for the mental health of residents and workers, but they improve air quality and can even improve water quality by preventing the excessive runoff of chemicals into local water supplies. In some states, walking or cycling trails purposefully combine rural and city areas in an attempt to highlight and maximize the use of local green space.

4. Low-Waste Projects
One way that developers and design teams are leading the charge in sustainable design is by planning carefully to ensure the effective use of resources. This doesn’t just mean the construction materials, although that is a serious consideration. For example, ensuring wood comes from managed forests is a way to make sure the project has a lower carbon footprint. But other considerations include the use of water and power, how workers will travel to the construction site, and the logistics of transporting materials. Civil engineers may also consider construction methods and the vehicles or equipment the construction teams will use throughout. Mindful planning of the whole project can keep waste to a minimum and create less potential pollution.

5. Designing “Healthy” Buildings
Research in neuroscience shows that everyone is affected by the buildings they live and work in. Mass urbanization has led to a scarcity of variance in modern construction and design, which may lead to declining mental health when residents or employees don’t have rural areas to spend time in. Mental health is a serious concern that’s starting to be taken more seriously, even in the world of design professionals. It’s possible to start thinking about buildings that are not only ideally suited to their purpose, but to the people who live and work in them. Techniques to improve mental health may involve the right acoustic insulation in busy or noisy areas, plenty of natural light through the effective placement of windows and skylights, and variation in aesthetics both inside and outside buildings to keep minds stimulated.

As the world continues to change, sustainability in civil engineering will become even more evident and innovative. Design in construction and infrastructure is an industry with a huge environmental impact, so civil engineers who work toward making it more sustainable are potentially changing the world — for the better. Contact Engineering Surveys and Services for more information or a consultation.


Image Credits: Unsplash @Creative Commons

As civil engineers and community planners see an increasing shift away from siloed suburbs towards livable, walkable communities with a strong sense of cohesion and identity, they are presented with the challenge -- and opportunity -- to embrace new strategies in community planning and zoning. In this article, we'll explore seven strategies for combating urban sprawl and creating modern communities that work for businesses and residents alike. 

1. Interconnected Shared-Use Trails
Multi-use trails are a critical part of smart growth infrastructure to connect community spaces within and around the suburbs. Without an extensive trail system, residents must choose between walking or cycling on the road and driving.

Trail systems encourage walking, bicycling, and other environmentally friendly modes of transportation. They foster safe travel experiences by expanding the space between cars and other traffic.

In addition to a connected trail system, livable suburbs can implement one or more of these strategies to promote walkability:

• ​Improve sidewalks
• Plant trees near streets
• Add crosswalks and signals
• Reduce speed limits in suburban areas

2. ​Mixed-Use Development and Zoning
Urban sprawl can increase the distance between homes and commercial properties, making neighborhoods less walkable. Civil engineers can enhance the livability of communities by developing land for mixed use. Mixed-use development can take many forms, including:

• Live/work: Structures that combine residential spaces with commercial or manufacturing spaces.
• Main street commercial: A revitalized downtown with retail, residential, food and beverage, and civic areas in a walkable format.
• Historic urban: Converted or retrofitted buildings that offer ground-floor commercial and upper-floor residential opportunities.
• Lifestyle center: Commercial shopping centers that house services and food and beverage locations near residential areas.
• Vertical: New structures that include upper-floor housing and ground-floor commercial locations.
• Horizontal: Interconnected structures that incorporate both commercial stores and housing.
• Complete neighborhood: A compact, planned neighborhood that positions many or all daily needs within walking distance of homes.
  
  

The specific features vary, but all of these mixed-use strategies seek to combine commercial and residential properties. Easy access to community centers, shopping opportunities, and other spaces create a more convenient walking experience.

Unfortunately, zoning issues often limit the ability of civil engineers to implement these strategies. Federal policies, local regulations, and other restrictions may need to be discussed and worked around before you can plan a mixed-use development. Partner with consulting engineers, like our team at Engineering Surveys & Services, to navigate these regulations.

3. Distinctive Community Features
Every community needs an identity to give its members a sense of pride and cohesion. Modern community planning will seek to highlight and celebrate existing community features, or create a sense of shared identity and culture in new developments. 

In some instances, distinct community features are shared by every property in a suburb; in others, various properties are tied together by a single structure or other distinctive feature. For example, a particular architectural style can turn a group of buildings into an iconic neighborhood, but so can a central, iconic commercial building.

Consider restoring historic buildings or looking for unique cultural or ecological features as the cornerstone of your suburb development. Revive or create an identity for a community to encourage new residents and new companies to move into the area.

4. Sustainable Transportation Options
Pedestrian-friendly suburbs offer opportunities to enjoy local parks, restaurants, and other amenities. To create a livable suburb, however, you need to connect this microcosm with the greater community.

Public transit is an opportunity to connect suburbs with each other and the downtown area. Quality public transportation includes these features:

• Affordable fares
• Timely transportation
• Convenient stops
• Accessible designs
  
  

Cars discourage communal travel. Accessible public transportation encourages eco-friendly solutions and gives non-drivers an opportunity to travel safely and efficiently.
Underground subway routes may not be a practical public transportation option for your specific suburb, but consider a bus or tram service. Hybrid and electric transportation continues to reduce the amount of fossil fuels used to operate a public transit route.

5. Predictable and Equitable Development
Development needs to be predictable and equitable to reach all community members. Look for ways to avoid excluding members of your planned suburb or suburb development project, particularly those who are at-risk or already affected by accessibility issues. For example, a historic urban structure may not have the ramps, elevators, and interior dimensions required for ADA accessibility, so you must incorporate these features into the development process.

Smart-growth community planning solutions must be carefully weighed in light of many different groups. Consider how to create an accessible neighborhood for all individuals of all abilities.

This can include features like wheelchair access to all community spaces and equitable development across income levels. It can also include affordable transportation options for residents who don’t drive. Some developments are inequitable due to unequal amounts of air pollution, so part of the development strategy should be to reduce air pollution in disproportionately affected areas.

6. Participation in Planning
Even a perfectly designed community project won’t succeed unless it’s accepted by those living in the suburb. Don’t move forward with a civil engineering project until you’ve allowed residents to weigh in and participate in planning the development.

Invest heavily in participation from local community members. A beautiful park, stunning apartment complex, or mixed commercial street needs to be designed with a specific community’s goals and vision in mind. Otherwise, it may not be used or may not be the best development opportunity.

7. Incorporate Land Features
Identify unique ecological features early on in your development process. Land features can help promote a community identity on their own or alongside historic structures.

In the past, swampland, woodland, fields, and other land features were quickly removed to make additional space. The result of removing these features was often urban sprawl and limited walkability.

Instead, consider incorporating more biodiversity and natural habitat in your suburb. This includes green spaces, but also rivers, streams, and other water features.


Learn More About Livable Suburbs
A livable and walkable suburb is a nuanced yet worthwhile community planning goal. Contact Engineering Surveys & Services to discuss your goals in providing local residents and stakeholders with livable, walkable solutions for their existing neighborhood or planned development.


Image Credits: UnSplash @Creative Commons
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​Complete Streets is a community planning concept that moves away from developing roads primarily for cars and other vehicles. Adopters of the Complete Streets method accept that people of all ages and abilities use streets, including those who bike, walk, and wheel. That means taking a whole new approach to civil engineering and designing communities with streets that work for everyone.

How is this change in mindset affecting community planning and the civil engineers who work on designing and building modern communities? Here are five examples of how civil engineering might have to change to incorporate Complete Streets policies.

1. Balanced Infrastructure Design
Today’s civil engineering teams don’t need any additional expertise to take on Complete Streets-based projects. What they do need is to take a more balanced and fair approach to creating an infrastructure that works for everyone. That might mean adjusting the way they create utilities or involve extending and lowering curbs or designing roads with slow vehicle lanes.
An important change for many civil engineers is to engage with communities to find out what is important to them. That means listening to all members of the community, not just leaders and heads of local businesses, to ensure the consideration of everyone’s needs for safety, health, and wellbeing.

2. Developing Communities Around Safer Roads
One of the key reasons Complete Streets exists is to make roads safer for everyone — including vehicle drivers. Infrastructure that prioritizes vehicular transport may create a more hazardous environment for all members when combined with communities full of pedestrians and cyclists.
According to Smart Growth America, in a recent three-year period there were more fatal car and pedestrian collisions nationwide than in the previous three decades. Complete Streets policies in towns like Durham, NC and Pittsburgh, PA, have led to safer street design, safer crossing options, and safer ways to access public transport through better-designed bus stops.

3. Increased Accessibility
Older towns and cities were designed and built without a good understanding of people with varying abilities and mobility needs. Today’s towns must be accessible, and that means civil engineers working with communities to understand their needs.
Road diets reduce the number of vehicular lanes and increase walkways and safe crossings. Beyond this, crossing signals suitable for blind and deaf people, and tactile paving on crossing areas, can all help make towns and cities more accessible.

Designing a community to be accessible for the least able makes it accessible for everyone, for many years to come. Engineering Surveys & Services strives to  provide accessible solutions that are built into the infrastructure of the community, rather than tagged on as an afterthought.

4. Merging of Rural and City Areas
Several local municipalities adopted Complete Streets policies that have allowed them to make effective changes to increase safety, and also to make the city and the rural landscape more accessible. Engineering Surveys & Services worked closely with Columbia Public Works to develop Mid-block Pedestrian Crossings. Areas that potentially had dangerous pedestrian crossings were now safe locations that enabled pedestrians to cross streets safely and efficiently. 

Engineering Surveys & Services coordinated with MoDOT, the city of Columbia, and Columbia county to plan and design roadways to Battle High School. The roadway was widened and new signals were installed to ensure the safety of the students and to provide drivers with an optimal site for pedestrians near the school. 

In Texas, several local municipalities adopted Complete Streets policies that have allowed them to make effective changes to increase safety, and also to make the city and the rural landscape more accessible. One change in North Richland Hills was to tie the existing bike trail system into new cycle lanes within the city limits. The city roads became safer, and cyclists could integrate the city into their bike ride organically.

Similarly, in Fort Worth, civil engineers have created a hiking and biking trail that runs right out of the city, improving the opportunities for people to stay active while linking the town to the surrounding landscape. Community planning will no doubt include more concepts like this moving into the future.

5. Creating Connected Communities
In many towns and cities, it’s become the norm to connect areas via vehicular routes, leaving pedestrians and cyclists to make circuitous journeys to their destinations. Complete Streets works to connect important destinations such as schools, libraries, parks, and employment centers for all citizens — not just those who drive.

In Huntsville, AL, temporary safety projects demonstrated the potential benefits of Complete Streets policies. Prompted by unfortunate car crashes involving pedestrians, measures included giving the town a road diet and restoring those missing connections. New signals, lane changes, and a thorough engagement with the community helped transform Huntsville and make it safer for everyone.

Complete Streets isn’t without its challenges. As a concept, it takes away space for cars and other vehicles, which some in the community will always oppose. However, as community planning becomes more focused on people instead of business or budgets, expect Complete Streets policies to become the norm.

If you’d like more information about how Complete Streets is transforming civil engineering and community planning, get in touch with Engineering Surveys & Services (ES&S) today.


Image Credits: Unsplash @Creative Commons

​On Thursday, June 24, the African American Heritage Trail committee hosted a dedication ceremony honoring Clara Miles, the founder of the Miles Manor neighborhood. 

Clara Miles was an African-American woman and advocate for abolishing segregation in Columbia. Her dream of having equal rights for her family and the African-American community inspired the Columbia Fair Housing Ordinance, a law which prohibits discrimination based on race, religion, gender, and disability in the housing market. 

In 1959, the Miles Manor Subdivision was established and provided Black families with the opportunity of home ownership. This initiative made it significantly easier for African-Americans to find housing prior to and after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 was passed. Clara Miles partnered with Engineering Surveys & Services to design the neighborhood’s infrastructure. Together, they were able to bring their shared vision to life, which future generations have since benefitted from. 


History of Miles Manor

In the 1950s and 1960s, African-American families in Columbia, and across America, were having trouble finding quality housing. In an effort to find a solution for their community, a group of ten Black families got together to build their own neighborhood in Columbia. This initiative was led by Clara Miles, whose inspiration came when she saw a $75,000 house while on a drive with her husband. Miles could not buy this house, but instead found a 30 acre plot of land for $20,000. She and some friends pooled their money together and bought this land, which would later become the Miles Manor subdivision.

Miles faced multiple obstacles when trying to build the new neighborhood. In addition to a lack of interest from builders and loan agents, the land was next to the old Columbia Sewer Treatment plant and the families could only reach it via an access road. 

The group of Black families approached Jim Reed at Engineering Surveys & Services in hopes that he could help them develop the neighborhood. During a time when many people didn’t want to be associated with an initiative benefiting minorities, Jim Reed saw potential in the project. As a result, in the 1970s, six more families moved into the neighborhood. The population of Miles Manor then grew, and it slowly started to evolve into an established community. A grocery store was soon built nearby and the sewage treatment plant was removed from the area, making it more livable for residents.

Partnership with Engineering Surveys & Services

Jim Reed and Clara Miles shared the same belief that everyone should have equal access to quality housing, no matter their ethnicity or socioeconomic status. Engineering Surveys & Services worked in various stages of the building process throughout the 1960s. In total, they completed two subdivision plats, as well as designing roads, sewers, and water mains. They also provided bid and construction phase services to keep the project on track. 

The lasting impact of Miles Manor

Many of the families of Miles Manor’s original founders still live in the neighborhood. Their goal is to foster a thriving community for future generations. We are proud to have contributed to such an important project during a time of racial injustice. For more information, contact Engineering Surveys & Services today.

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​Image Credit: Picture from the event

Dennis Heckman, P.E is a licensed Professional Engineer with more than 30 years of Civil Engineering experience as the state bridge engineer, structural resource and project manager, structural designer, and construction engineer.

His skills include: 

• Big companies team leadership
• Management of large and complicated projects 
• Asset management
• Policy decisions
• Structural design
  
  

ORGANIZATIONS:

• AASHTO Committee on Bridges & Structures (past vice chair of T-3)
• Transportation Engineers Association of Missouri (past vice president)
• American Council of Engineering Comp. (fmr judge for Eng. Excel Award)

HONORS & ACTIVITIES: 

• Graduate of Leadership Missouri – Missouri Chamber of Commerce (2015) 
• University of Missouri Civil Engineering Academy of Distinguished Alumni 
• Participant in 26th US – Japan Bridge Engineering Workshop (Sept. 2010)