Channel Walls Slow Water to Protect Neighborhood

THE CHALLENGE

The City of Lenexa, Kansas was in need of a solution to stabilize the banks of Brentwood Stream . The stream flows through a residential area and was beginning to erode the banks of the properties adjacent to it. The City was looking for a product to prevent further erosion as well as to provide flood control for the area. Many of the buildings and fences near the stream were built too close to the edge of the banks making it impossible to use geogrid reinforcement in most areas.

THE SOLUTION

City Officials looked to St. Joe Concrete Products in St. Joseph, Missouri to provide a solution. The Redi-Rock gravity retaining wall system was the product of choice for St. Joe because of its ability to utilize massive, one-ton concrete blocks to harness the power of gravity. The large scale of the system allows walls to be built much higher than other wall systems without using geogrid or tie backs. This along with the natural rock aesthetics and easy-to-access design resources made Redi-Rock an easy choice for the project.

The Redi-Rock 9 inch (230 millimeter) setback blocks were perfect for the areas that couldn't use geogrid. This block makes it easy to reach their desired heights of the wall with minimum excavating.  41 inch (1030 millimeter) and 28 inch (710 millimeter) gravity blocks were also used to prevent further erosion and maintain control of the flood waters.

THE OUTCOME

The project was constructed in 3 phases with block installation that began in March 2007 and finished in October 2007. The completed wall was 38,000 square feet (3530 square meters) and was built using the Redi-Rock Limestone texture blocks.

The City of Lenexa has had nothing but good comments about the finished wall. "Redi-Rock was an excellent product for this project!" says Gerald Heckman of St. Joe Concrete Products.

Project: Brentwood Stream Stabilization and Flood Control Project #42 Owner: City of Lenexa, Kansas Block Manufacturer: St. Joe Concrete Products Engineer: Creal Clark and Seifert Installer: Redford Construction Location: Lenexa, Kansas Year Built: 2007