HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) — Urban Engineers announced on Wednesday, May 25 that the Harrisburg International Airport Levee System Rehab project won a National Recognition Award.

The levee project was honored by the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) 2022 Engineering Excellence Awards competition, which is considered the “Academy Awards of the engineering industry.” The award was presented at the organization’s annual black-tie awards gala held at the Grand Hyatt Washington in DC. 

“We would like to congratulate the Susquehanna Area Regional Airport Authority (SARAA) and other key partners on the national recognition of this important project,” said Eric DeDominicis, PE, deputy practice leader for aviation at Urban. “Far too often, infrastructure challenges are not addressed until there has been a disaster. In the case of SARAA’s levee at HIA, the authority was able to work with our capable team to resolve a water resource challenge before failure.” 

The HIA levee was first constructed in 1958 to prevent flooding from the Susquehanna river onto the runway of the airport. In the last 60 years, erosion, vegetative growth, ice jams, and other natural forces have reduced the cross-section and the condition of the levee.

Urban was tasked with providing design services and construction administration/management services under an on-call contract with SARAA. The objective was to rehabilitate the existing flood dike and levee system. The project was completed four months ahead of the baseline schedule in July 2021.

“Strong leadership from Tim Edwards and Dave Spaulding of SARAA, as well as close collaboration with KC Construction, contributed to a successful team effort that led to the project’s effective completion,” said Brian Peda, PE, regional manager for Central Pennsylvania from said. “Efficiently extending the life of the Levee was the ultimate goal, and we are proud to have had this project recognized at both the state and national levels.”