The City retained BCC to update its 2014 Stormwater Master Plan (SWMP).  The goal was to create a plan to address water resource issues within the City. These issues include drainage problems, street flooding, inadequate infrastructure, stormwater quality and recharge, impacts due to projected sea level, and groundwater rise, as other stormwater-related problems.

BCC established the current and future flood protection level of service to evaluate the performance of conceptual stormwater improvement projects. An integrated 1D/2D hydrologic/hydraulic model was developed using the ICPR V4 model. The SWMP Report ranked the top 20 capital improvement projects based on cost-effectiveness, to address the projected 2050 sea level and groundwater rise. BCC coordinated with Miami-Dade County to establish the boundary conditions of the model, using the available XP-SWMM models developed by the County for Canal Basins C-4 and C-6.

The key activities completed as part of this Stormwater Management Master Plan update included:

• Data Collection and Evaluation
• 1D/2D Integrated Hydrologic/Hydraulic Modeling
• Existing Conditions Hydrologic/Hydraulic Model Development and Validation
• Sea-level and groundwater impacts assessment for a 2050 Planning Horizon
• Stormwater Management and Flood Protection Project Formulation and Conceptual Design
• Analyze and implement resilient stormwater management best management practices to address a 2050 sea-level rise planning horizon
• Capital Improvement Plan Development
• Draft and Final Stormwater Management and Flood Protection Master Plan Report
• Present Stormwater Master Plan to City Council for approval and adoption

The Stormwater Management Plan update will assist the City in:

• Providing a 5-year stormwater Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) to implement high-priority stormwater improvement projects in a systematic, objective and cost-effective manner.
• Implementing resilient stormwater management practices to address the projected 2050 sea-level, groundwater and increased rainfall conditions.
• Securing grants for flood protection and water quality improvement projects
• Improving the City’s FEMA Community Rating Score (CRS) that will help reduce resident flood insurance rates.