Stormwater improvements will help fix drainage and erosion problems at Abernathy Greenway Park South using a $400,000 Georgia Environmental Protection Division grant to help fund the $3.9 million project.
The Sandy Springs City Council approved a contract between the city and the Georgia Environmental Protection Division for the grant during its Feb. 4 meeting. The city has $3.6 million available in its Capital Project Accounts for the project.
The staff report presented at the meeting said widening Abernathy Road caused dramatic changes to drainage patterns, putting additional pressure on the Marsh Creek tributary that runs along the southern property edge of the 14-acre park. Sedimentation and erosion have overwhelmed existing drainage structures.
John Boudreau of AtkinsRéalis, the project manager for the Abernathy Greenway Park South project, said the road is approximately 20 feet higher than the stream elevation in the culverts that drain into the greenway.
“Because of the significant grade change and the amount of water that comes off the road, significant erosion has occurred on the site. In addition to the trail itself, in several areas along the Greenway at the road, the soil is washing into the creek itself and has compromised the stream channel,” Boudreau said.
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AtkinsRéalis designed improvements to include several hundred feet of stream mitigation, rain gardens, a catch basin, and wet filters along Abernathy Road in a contract with the city. The project focuses on a section of the park from Long Acres Drive to Wright Road, and an alternate section from Wright Road to the Sandy Springs Village shopping center.
Boudreau said they are working with Fulton County to relocate approximately 1,000 feet of existing sanitary sewer line located within the stream bank. The clay pipe serves 10 houses on Long Acres Drive. In some places, the 60-year-old line has less than a foot of cover.
Based on past conversations, Mayor Rusty Paul said he believes Fulton County may suggest that if the city pays the costs to move the sewer line, the county will comply with the city’s plans.
A land disturbance permit plan will be submitted to the city. The project has received approval for a stream buffer variance and its erosion control plans from the Georgia Environmental Protection Division, and approval of its plans for stream bank stabilization and placement of fill by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Council member Jody Reichel supports the project but wanted more information from AtkinsRéalis. “I’d be curious to know how much it would cost if we didn’t worry about the trail,” she said.
Boudreau said they would get that cost to her. He said the bulk of the cost would be in the stormwater mitigation measures and reconstruction of the stream.
