Arlington Finalists Move to the Next Stage of Low Impact Design Competition

By Office of Communication

Posted on October 09, 2012, October 09, 2012

Nine finalist teams are competing in four design challenge categories in the North Texas Land/Water Sustainability Forum's Low Impact Development Design Competition. The Urban Redevelopment category includes conceptual designing of the Central Library as part of Arlington's Civic Center while incorporating LID techniques, reducing impervious cover, promoting infiltration, reducing stormwater pollution and reducing long-term maintenance costs. Five teams competed in the Central Library's category and two finalists will advance on to the finals event on November 7^th. The Urban Redevelopment category finalists include Team Shrickel, Rollins and Associates and Dewberry and Team Walter P. Moore and Associates and Omniplan.

Arlington's support team for the Central Library is comprised of Cary Siegfried, library director; Keith Melton, director of Public Works and Transportation; and Audra Valamides, stormwater engineer in Public Works and Transportation. This support team created the Central Library's design requirements for the competition and provided background information for the site and surrounding area.

"The City of Arlington's participation in this competition positions us on the forefront of smart re-development," said Valamides. "The LID Competition submittals demonstrated that North Texas architecture and engineering firms have the creativity and expertise to create unique and functional designs for a more sustainable future. The exciting "lightning' presentations at the finals event will showcase sites in Arlington, Dallas and Fort Worth that will serve as model developments around the country."

The design competition is one of several components of the library redevelopment planning process. Discover Division, Downtown Arlington Management Corporation, UT Arlington, the Arlington Independent School District, Tarrant County College and Central Library Visioning are also involved in the planning.

The North Texas Land/Water Sustainability Forum was founded in 2011 to provide exposure to the full range of sustainability practices, encourage their adoption through education, support their adaptation for the conditions found in our local environment, and foster creativity in both sustainable development and the regulatory structure that enables it. Finalists will make their presentations to a finals jury panel on Wednesday evening, November 7, 2012 in the Grand Ballroom at the Worthington Hotel, in downtown Fort Worth.