The Castlewood project transformed a deteriorating, noncompliant industrial yard into a national model for resilient, sustainable infrastructure. It demonstrates how innovative engineering can solve real problems, safeguard communities, and set new standards for industries everywhere.
Dominion Energy’s 31-acre Castlewood Road facility in Richmond, Virginia, faced widespread infrastructure deterioration and environmental noncompliance. Pavement across the yard was failing, stormwater runoff from more than 13 acres of impervious surface drained untreated into Grindall Creek, and unchecked erosion destabilized embankments adjacent to residential neighborhoods. The site’s stormwater conditions created both operational hazards for Dominion staff and compliance risks under Virginia environmental regulations.
To address these challenges, Dominion engaged Nitsch Engineering as prime civil engineer to lead a comprehensive stormwater and resilience initiative. The solution combined site reconfiguration, stream restoration, and sustainable infrastructure in a way unprecedented for an industrial facility. Key features included a 117-by-170-foot underground detention system, hydrodynamic separator, stormwater filtration system, and a 35-foot concrete level spreader dispersing treated runoff to a restored section of Grindall Creek. We designed a custom outlet control and access structure to allow safe, repeatable water-quality sampling by Dominion Energy, a rare innovation in industrial contexts.
Complexity was compounded by mid-design FEMA floodplain revisions, extensive permitting with multiple agencies, and the need to maintain full operational continuity at an active materials storage yard. Originally planned as seven phases, construction was consolidated into three to minimize disruption, requiring detailed logistics planning with Dominion’s operations staff.
Completed in 2025, the project is the first industrial facility in the nation to achieve U.S. Green Building Council SITES Pre-Certification, proving that sustainable site design can extend into operational utility yards. The Castlewood project addressed regulatory compliance, enhanced environmental stewardship, protected surrounding neighborhoods, and set a national precedent for sustainable industrial infrastructure.
