Blog Post

When the Metropolitan Saint Louis Sewer District managers decided to construct a new six million gallon wet weather storage tank in Saint Ann, MO across from the St. Louis Lambert International Airport, they were required to have this high-profile tank designed to architecturally complement future retail development in the area. Preload, as a subcontractor to Goodwin Brothers Construction Company, Inc., worked closely with consulting engineers Crawford, Murphy and Tilly to develop an Exterior Insulation Finish System (EIFS) on the tank to “disguise” the tank to resemble an architecturally pleasing office building.

Aside from the extensive architectural treatment, there are also several unique features incorporated into the tank including:

• an extensive internal piping system
• a wash down system to facilitate automatic cleaning after a storm event
• a parapet wall and down comers to capture storm water runoff and divert it into the tank structure

The project has received numerous awards including the 2014 ACEC Missouri Grand Award, the 2013 Keystone Award by the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of St. Louis and the 2013 Quality Concrete Award by the Concrete Council of St. Louis.

The tank represents an attractive and low maintenance solution to the storm water issues facing many cities and towns across the United States. Most importantly, it is an example of the cost savings that can be achieved through the use of storage tanks over other storm water management solutions.

Project Contacts:
Owner: City of St. Louis
Engineer: Crawford, Murphy & Tilly, Inc. – www.cmtengr.com
General Contractor: Goodwin Brothers Construction www.goodwinbros.com
Preload District Sales Manager – Hal Boyd, PE – hboyd@preload.com