Lexington Parking Authority officials are showing off a new stormwater treatment system in the Helix garage downtown. It is a result the city’s stormwater grant program.
The urban county government grant for the parking structure covered most of the cost of the $254,000 project. The goal of the treatment system is to catch most of the runoff from the garage which contains oils, chemicals, greases, and road salts. Prior to the installation of the system, the runoff emptied directly in Town Branch Creek.
Now the water is routed through two, 1000-gallon oil/water separation tanks. They help filter out impurities before the water goes into the downtown waterway. A more visible element of the new treatment system is the vividly colored permeable concrete at the center of the exit ramp.
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