Development Master Planning
Urban Plains by Brandt

The Urban Plains by Brandt development will eventually cover an entire section of currently undeveloped land in southwest Fargo.  The development plan includes a 25-acre park, of which 10-acres will be a unique water feature intended to provide a local attraction and stormwater retention. When fully developed, the water feature will be approximately one mile long with a retaining wall along one side and a meandering sloped shoreline along the other.  The water feature will be surrounded by beaches, boardwalks, and other park lands intended to allow residents of the community to utilize the water feature for recreational purposes.  The development will also be home to the new $45 million Urban Plains Tournament Facility. The facility will sit adjacent to the park area and provide, along with the park, a recreational Mecca in the Fargo area. The development will also be home to a new medical facility, commercial shops, and mixed-use housing.

Site Master Planning
In order to assure the proper protection (water quality and water quantity) and operation of stormwater management facilities as well as orderly and efficient movement of site earthworks, Urban Plains and Icon Architectural Group retained AE2S to perform an in-depth stormwater management plan as wells as an extensive analysis of site earthwork quantities for an initial area encompassing approximately 160-acres.

In order to assess the design and performance of the proposed Urban Plains stormwater management system, a pre- vs. post-development runoff analysis was performed for the 2-yr, 10-yr, and 100-yr hydrologic events.  In order to make the comparison, HydroCAD® and XP-SWMM® models were setup to replicate the existing/proposed topography, soils, and land use. The software was then used to analyze peak flows and annual pollutant generations and assess the performance of the system in mitigating both to ultimately ensure an attractive and safe water body.

To assess site earthwork quantities a detailed topographic survey was performed to inventory site stockpiles and all site existing ground elevations. The survey data was imported to Autodesk Civil 3D software and used to develop an existing ground digital topographic model. After data import, Civil 3D was used to create a proposed site digital topographic model. The proposed site grading plan took into account modeled high-water levels from the main water body as well as considerations for overland flooding from the Sheyenne River. Once both digital surfaces were created (existing/proposed), they were used to generate a site volume surface. The information generated by the volume surface (i.e. individual site cuts, fills, and earth work balances)  will be the ultimate tool utilized by the Client to ensure that they are efficient in the excavation and movement of site earthworks for the Urban Plains development.