May 9, 2017

Pervious concrete

Photo courtesy of WACA

Pervious concrete helped eliminate the need retention ponds, leaving more space for playfields.

Fort Lewis North Athletic Complex

Location: Joint Base Lewis-McChord

The new Fort Lewis North Athletic Complex has four all-weather turf baseball fields, two full-size basketball courts and two all-weather turf soccer fields. The entire complex is lighted for nighttime activities.

The complex had an issue with putting in a retention pond, which would diminish the amount of field area. The solution for this problem was pervious concrete. This pavement technology creates more efficient land use by eliminating the need for retention ponds, swales and other stormwater-management devices. In doing so, pervious concrete has the ability to lower overall project costs on a first-cost basis.

By capturing stormwater and allowing it to seep into the ground, porous concrete is instrumental in recharging groundwater, reducing stormwater runoff, and meeting Environmental Protection Agency stormwater regulations. In fact, the use of pervious concrete is among the best-management practices recommended by the EPA — and by other agencies and geotechnical engineers across the country — for the management of stormwater runoff.

The pervious concrete surface totaled 62,000 square feet. There were also 74,000 square feet of broom-finished concrete pavement, two full-sized color-stained concrete baseball courts and 4,000 square feet of colored and stamped concrete entrances.

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