SPU Shape Our Water Plan

SEATTLE, WA

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As part of Seattle’s 50-year integrated planning for its drainage and wastewater system, the Shape Our Water plan is working to create a more equitable and resilient future by shifting how projects and programs are designed towards a collaborative planning process that includes community and cross-sector partners. Phase 1 included the definition of focus areas as a basis for characterizing system needs and prioritizing investments citywide.

In close collaboration with Seattle Public Utilities (SPU), Lotus managed the development of cross-issue focus areas through a holistic GIS-based evaluation of SPU’s system needs (e.g. capacity constraints, maintenance challenges, seismic risk, etc.), future stressors (e.g. sea level rise, population growth, etc.), and community priorities (e.g. mobility, open space access, workforce development, etc.), which will enable SPU to develop multi-benefit, equitable, community-focused solutions. This important initial analysis was accomplished by building dozens of ESRI ModelBuilder tools to synthesize results from over 50 disparate risk-based analyses into a compiled GIS geodatabase that will serve as an essential component to help identify and prioritize where investments are needed most and facilitate the development of innovative solutions for ongoing and future Shape Our Water work.