About stormwater management at BlueOval Battery Park and the MAJOR Campus

What is stormwater?
Stormwater refers to water generated during a precipitation event like rain, hail or snow melt.

How will stormwater be managed?
The stormwater management system design incorporates the use of vegetated ditches (bio-swales), a forebay and a detention/infiltration basin system that work together to effectively manage stormwater runoff, reduce the risk of flooding and protect water quality

Overview of the stormwater management system
Stormwater from Ford’s BlueOval Battery Park Michigan will be conveyed by roof drains, storm sewers, and bio-swales or vegetated ditches into a detention or infiltration basin. This flow path allows materials commonly associated with parking lots and roadways – such as sediment, oil, grease, road salt, and automotive fluids – to be filtered out, mimicking the natural water cycle. To provide additional protection, the system design includes a forebay to promote the capture of sediment in advance of the basin.

Stormwater from parking lots and roadways enters bio-swales, which are vegetated ditches between parking spaces. These bio-swales will intercept rainwater runoff, employing a recognized best practice for environmentally conscious parking lot design. Naturally filtered runoff from the bio-swales then enters a catch basin inlet to the larger stormwater management system. This measure prevents parking lot and roadway materials from entering the stormwater system and ultimately reaching local waterways.

Stormwater that reaches the basin will slowly infiltrate into the soil during the first flush runoff, about 1-inch of rainfall. For larger storm events, the basin is designed to detain stormwater for release at a controlled rate to the Kalamazoo River through a new culvert constructed underneath the existing railroad tracks. Vegetation in the basin is designed to filter stormwater and remove sediments as the basin empties. The railroad culvert outlets feature extensive natural stone riprap designed to slow flows entering the existing vegetated drainage course to the Kalamazoo River.


Pre-development conditions
The property being developed was historically used for farming and agriculture. Stormwater from agricultural sites typically contains high levels of phosphorus, nitrogen and sediment pollution.

The topography of the project site generally falls from Michigan Avenue south to the Kalamazoo River. The MDOT-owned railroad forms a barrier to stormwater reaching the river. Two drainage culverts that ran under the railroad tracks to the Kalamazoo River received stormwater runoff from the site prior to the start of development.

These culverts were severely deteriorated, and undersized even for pre-development conditions. Therefore, both culverts were removed and replaced to provide adequate site drainage and preserve railroad integrity.

Permitting & Construction
Site development and earthmoving started in March 2023. At that time, future infiltration basins were used as sediment basins following protocols laid out by a Calhoun County Road Department Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control permit and a Notice of Containment issued by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy.

As work has progressed, Basin 1 remains as a sediment basin for the BlueOval project while Basin 2 will serve as an infiltration basin for future development in the Marshall Area Jobs, Opportunity and Recreation (MAJOR) Campus.

The stormwater management system design was reviewed by multiple regulatory agencies. MDOT and Amtrak reviewed the design for replacement of the existing deteriorated culverts with two new 6-foot diameter pipes that were constructed under the railroad tracks in May 2024. EGLE reviewed the construction plans, performed a site review, and determined that a stormwater permit was not required. The City of Marshall is the primary approval agency for the stormwater management system design.

Post Development Conditions
The permitting process is aimed at assuring the stormwater runoff peak rates are equal to or less than they were pre-development. For a storm with an intensity of one that occurs once every 10 years, the approved stormwater management system will realize a 50% reduction in stormwater runoff rates to the Kalamazoo River. Runoff rates will be further reduced during more frequent, smaller rain events.

The city of Marshall will ultimately own, operate and maintain the public stormwater management system infrastructure within the MAJOR Campus. Once construction of the BlueOval project is complete, the design measures implemented will include extensive vegetative cover, bio-swales, new railroad culverts with erosion control stone riprap and infiltration basins to minimize the potential for pollutants to enter the Kalamazoo River.

The final site condition provides a more sustainable, environmentally compliant condition when compared to the pre-development land use condition.