Land Development Design Initiative • www.lddi.cee.vt.edu • Blacksburg, VA Phone: (540) 231-2474 • Fax: (540) 231-7532 • E-mail: lddi@vt.edu July 2020 Volume 14, Issue 4
In this issue: • LDDI, Inc. sets the date for its annual golf tourney (p. 1) • New developments come to Virginia Tech and Ashburn, VA (p. 2) • A recent graduate reflects on the past and present, and Cary, North Carolina welcomes a new mixed-use development (p. 3) • Course focus - CEE 4254 Municipal Engineering (p. 4)
LDDI Bridges is a publication of
Virginia Tech’s Land Development Design Initiative Editors: Kelly Shayne Young ksyoung@vt.edu
Kevin Young keyoung@vt.edu
Virginia Tech The Via Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Greetings from Blacksburg and the campus of Virginia Tech! While cookouts, beach trips, and other warm weather activities may be smaller in scale and logistically more difficult than in years past, I do hope that my note finds you and your family finding safe and creative ways to enjoy the summer season. Summer is a quiet time on campus, but certainly not one of inactivity for LDDI. In late May, members of our Advisory Board convened for a strategic planning session to discuss the future of the program. Last month, LDDI hosted its first ever virtual General Meeting, with 135 participants connecting via Zoom. Earlier this summer, we published our 10th Annual Report, available to you HERE. We’re staying busy, while still making sure to recharge and prepare for what promises to be a uniquely challenging fall semester that begins in just a few short weeks. The fall 2020 semester will provide CEE students with three LDDI course offerings: CEE 3274, Introduction to Land Development Design; CEE 4264, Sustainable Land Development; and CEE 4274, Land Development Design. I will be instructing CEE 3274 in an entirely virtual format, as well as CEE 4274 that I will deliver in a hybrid mode with both virtual and some limited in-person instruction. LDDI Assistant Coordinator Claire White will make her debut in CEE 4264, delivering the course in a fully virtual format. We’re both embracing the challenges of limited in-person engagement with our students, and we are working hard to maintain the unique and high quality instruction for which LDDI is known. I look forward to sharing updates with you as the semester progresses. I hope that you will enjoy adding this newsletter to your summer reading list, and I welcome your ideas for its future content. Further, I invite you to contact either myself or Claire with thoughts you have on improving the overall LDDI program. In closing, I wish you and your loved ones health and well-being as we all navigate these challenging times. Kevin D. Young, PE, M. ASCE, VT LDDI Coordinator
Save the Date - LDDI, Inc. Annual Golf Tournament On Thursday, September 24th, LDDI, Inc. will host the sixth annual Land Development Professionals Golf Tournament at the Potomac Shores Golf Club. LDDI, Inc. is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that exists to support the broader efforts of the LDDI program. The Land Development Professionals Golf Tournament provides an opportunity to play this gorgeous Jack Nicklaus signature course, while also supporting LDDI – it’s a win-win scenario, and we hope you’ll mark your calendar and plan to join us as a golfer or event sponsor! For more information, please email golf.lddi@gmail.com. *LDDI, Inc. reserves the right to cancel or postpone this event should conditions related to the COVID-19 pandemic require such action.
LDDI Bridges July 2020
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Draper Aden Helps to Bring Living-Learning Community to Virginia Tech’s Creativity and Innovation District
Virginia Tech’s new Creativity and Innovation District residence hall will enhance students’ academic and cocurricular experiences to support engagements and connections throughout campus and the Town of Blacksburg. Architectural rendering provided by the DesignBuild Team of Hanbury and W.M. Jordan Company
In the fall of 2021, the site of Virginia Tech’s former University Club will house a new 225,000-gross-square-foot LivingLearning Community with approximately 600 students. This building is the first to transform this area of campus into the new Creativity and Innovation District, which will provide a wide variety of academic, social, research, and collaboration spaces. Students will be immersed in design, technology, and the visual and performing arts, and will live among a diverse community, including faculty and varsity student-athletes. Draper Aden Associates has provided survey, geotechnical, structural, and civil site design services as part of the W.M. Jordan and Hanbury design-build team. Even though the project site is only four acres, the design faced many challenges. Several utilities serving a major portion of the campus and the Town of Blacksburg crossed the site, and coordination of both the horizontal and vertical locations of these utilities was critical to the civil design. Each utility was profiled, and conflicts were identified and eliminated. Additionally, to facilitate an expedited building construction schedule, Draper Aden Associates prepared an early utility relocation package, which was released for construction during the design development phase of the building. Knowing the alignment, elevations, size, and composition of an existing box culvert across the northeast corner of the site was
also critical to the site and building design. After several unsuccessful attempts to locate the culvert, the project team ultimately excavated and found the culvert, along with its major bend and two-foot drop. A final decision was made for the culvert to remain and the building to bridge the existing culvert. In order to meet floodplain requirements, Draper Aden Associates developed a hydrologic (HEC-HMS) model to determine the tributary flow rates and a hydraulic (HECRAS) model to establish the existing base flood elevations (BFEs). Using the existing model as the base, the design-build team and Virginia Tech Office of University Planning collaborated through an iterative and creative process to meet floodplain requirements, while also responding to the university’s equally important goals of universal access and “visual openness, intentional pedestrian connections, and a variety of landscape spaces.” Site development projects come in all shapes, sizes, and environments-each with its own unique challenges. Often a small, urban project is more complex than a greenfield development-as with the Creativity and Innovation District Living-Learning Community project. Draper Aden Associates views these challenges as exciting opportunities to continuously improve and explore new approaches to solve issues and provide a lasting, positive impact on communities throughout the region.
Tri-Tek Provides Services for New OneLife Fitness Center in Ashburn, Virginia Tri-Tek is providing site design and related services to a new OneLife Fitness facility located near Ashburn, Virginia’s historic Belmont Farm.
Tri-Tek is currently designing a site plan for a brand new 65,000-square-foot OneLife Fitness center with an indoor saltwater swimming pool. The site will also include a separate 55,000-square-foot indoor tennis facility. Located on a 12-acre site in Ashburn, Virginia near the historic Belmont Farm and new Belmont Golf Course, OneLife Fitness is planning for a grand opening in the summer of 2022. The site plan incorporates design elements that include guest and member parking, sidewalks and trails, underground
utility services, off-site stormwater management, on-site best management practices, extensive landscaping, erosion and sediment controls, and public water and sewer services. In addition to meeting Loudoun County’s land development rules, zoning regulations, and extensive proffer conditions, Tri-Tek incorporated site features that were required to meet the unique design guidelines for the Belmont Executive Center, such as viewshed and scenic easements.
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LDDI Bridges July 2020
LDDI Graduates in the Industry: Alex Wells J2 Engineers Project Engineer
Alex Wells completed his academic career in December 2017, graduating from Virginia Tech with a B.S. in civil engineering. Shortly after, he began his professional career with J2 Engineers, Inc. Hailing from Blacksburg, Virginia, Alex now resides in Northern Virginia, serving J2’s Chantilly, Virginia office as a project engineer. While a student, Alex took advantage of LDDI’s course offerings, enrolling in Intro to Land Development, Land Development Design, and Advanced Land Development. Each class was instrumental in preparing Alex for his professional career. “Intro to Land Development and Land Development Design gave me a great base of land development knowledge from a design and CAD perspective,” he explains, “while Advanced Land Development gave me insight into the ‘people aspect’ of the job and introduced me to professionals in the industry, helping with the transition from school to the professional world.” Alex believes LDDI’s strengths are the quality course selection, well-respected faculty, and access to professionals and potential employers. “Beginning in LDDI, the course selection drew me in and the faculty, especially Kevin Young, helped open my
eyes to what I could do with land development and how it could bring all aspects of my civil engineering degree together into one career.” After almost two and a half years in the professional world, Wells has been applying all the different facets of the job he learned at Virginia Tech to various design tasks across several Northern Virginia jurisdictions. “One of my favorite parts of my job, as well as one of the most challenging aspects, is understanding and applying the codes and regulations of each jurisdiction, while also using engineering judgement and the knowledge I learned in school,” reveals Wells. Alex has had the opportunity to hone his skills working on a range of projects, including a high school track, multi-purpose turf field, and a daycare facility for a large medical institute. “Each of these projects had their own challenges, but what I enjoyed most is being able to witness their impacts on the community and to see them being used and enjoyed.” While Alex misses the small-town feel of Blacksburg, he welcomes every opportunity to get outdoors. He enjoys running, biking, and hiking, and even ran the Marine Corps Marathon this past fall!
Fenton is a 92-acre regional mixed-use development located on Cary Towne Boulevard at the interchange with Interstate 40 in Cary, North Carolina. The project will provide a vibrant, high-density, pedestrianand transit-oriented development directly serving Cary and west Raleigh residents. As a high-profile development hosting office towers and a variety of shopping destinations such as a Wegman’s grocery, it will also attract visitors from across the greater Research Triangle Region. The project will include 2.8-million square feet of Class A retail, office, restaurant, hotel, and luxury multi-family space focused on a pedestrian friendly main street.
Development plans for the first phase of Fenton were approved on April 29, 2020 and include details regarding streets, utilities, building locations, architecture, hardscape and landscaping. Offering 200,000 square feet of office accommodations and 350,000 square feet of retail, residents and visitors will enjoy an impressive mix of retail and entertainment options. Integration with transit is a key measure of project success. The project is located within walking distance of a proposed stop on the future bus rapid transit line connecting Raleigh and Cary and will provide direct access to the local and regional transit systems
“Because of LDDI’s access to its sponsoring firms, I was able to meet employers and industry professionals from across the country representing many companies with different things to offer. This made my transition from school to the professional world much easier and gave me connections that are still valuable to me today.” Alex Wells, J2 Engineers Project Engineer
Fenton will provide Cary, North Carolina and the region’s residents and visitors with a vibrant new destination for commercial retail and office needs.
Thank you to our corporate sponsors and municipal members! Last year, LDDI enjoyed the support of 50 corporate sponsors and municipal members. We are currently holding our 2020-21 sponsorship drive, and if your organization is not already a sponsor or member, we encourage you to consider becoming one! There are four levels of annual corporate sponsorship, each offering varying levels of student access and interaction. Two levels of membership are offered for municipalities and other government agencies. To learn more about corporate sponsorships or municipal memberships, please visit our website at www.lddi.cee.vt.edu, or feel free to reach out to Kevin or Claire directly. Kevin D. Young VT LDDI Coordinator (540) 231-2474 keyoung@vt.edu Claire M. White VT LDDI Assistant Coordinator (540) 231-3934 cmwhite@vt.edu Susan Wolford LDDI Advisory Board Chair (703) 840-4815 sswolford@pennoni.com Jeff Gilliland LDDI Advisory Board Vice Chair (703) 361-1550 jgilliland@j2engineers.com
LDDI Bridges July 2020 Course Focus - CEE 4254 Municipal Engineering Over the past year, this newsletter has highlighted the courses comprising the LDDI curriculum, including Introduction to Land Development Design (CEE 3274), Land Development Design (CEE 4274), Sustainable Land Development (CEE 4264), and Advanced Land Development (CEE 4284). In this issue, we conclude this series with a focus on our Municipal Engineering course (CEE 4254). Municipal Engineering was first introduced to the LDDI curriculum in 2010 and was initially taught in the spring semester of alternating years. Beginning in 2019, and due to strong student demand for the course, 4254 is now taught every spring semester. Unlike CEE 3274 and CEE 4274, Municipal Engineering is not focused on building and developing students’ Former LDDI student Allie Zuras presents her design skills. Rather, the course team’s Municipal Engineering project, via Zoom, seeks to familiarize students with at the June 19th LDDI General Meeting. the role of the municipal engineer, and the important relationship that exists between municipal engineers and the land development industry. Since its debut in 2010, the course has been taught by Jimmie Jenkins (Fairfax County – retired), Adele Schirmer (formerly of the Town of Blacksburg), Meredith Jones (Eden & Associates), and Randy Formica (Town of Blacksburg). The spring 2020 offering of the course was taught for the first time by the Town of Blacksburg’s Matt Stolte, and he delivered content through four major course modules:
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Municipal Engineering Finance and Planning Municipal Infrastructure, Capital Construction, Systems Operation, and Engineered Life Cycles Infrastructure Management Concepts, Tools, and Programs Research, Organization, and Presentation of Preliminary Engineering Projects
The course features many guest speakers and municipal engineering mentors from across Virginia who work directly with students on projects. LDDI graduates who have completed CEE 4254 will often cite the course as a strong compliment to CEE 4274, noting the value in having a more comprehensive understanding of both the private and public players in the land development arena. We recognize and thank the following organizations for providing mentors for the spring 2020 offering of Municipal Engineering: • • • • • • • • • • • •
Arlington County City of Fredericksburg City of Manassas City of Richmond City of Williamsburg Clark Nexsen Eden & Associates Fairfax County Pennoni Spotsylvania County Town of Blacksburg Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT)