As hurricane season nears its peak, the Alachua County Public Works Department announced that two new pumps are ready to help protect the Robin Lane area from legacy flooding. Legacy flooding can be described as long-term, persistent flooding, primarily associated with developments that do not have adequate stormwater systems because they were built before the implementation of the statewide stormwater regulations in the early 1980s.
In September 2021, the Alachua County Commission approved a plan to invest approximately $1 million into the County’s stormwater infrastructure by upgrading the pumping systems at several of the legacy flooding areas around the County. The Robin Lane stormwater system, located at the intersection of Robin Lane (N.W. 75th Street) and 39th Avenue, was one of the first projects to be completed. Public Works staff completed the project almost entirely in-house for just under $200,000 and funded the project with the stormwater special assessment and gas tax funds.
Improvements to the Robin Lane system included the purchase of two new 5,000 gallons per minute pumps, additional piping to support the second pump, a 48-inch diameter one-way check valve to isolate the water in the stormwater pond from the subdivision entrance, and 750 feet of eight-inch diameter outfall piping. Together, these improvements should more than double the previous pumping capacity, reducing the chances of road closure due to flooding. The new system will be more reliable and require significantly less County staff time to operate, so more staff time can be allocated to clearing roads during and after a storm event.
For more information, contact Alachua County Public Works Civil Engineer James Link at 352-374-5245.