The District Green Stormwater Infrastructure at Highland Bridge project in Saint Paul, Minnesota, has received one of three 2025 Project Excellence Awards from the Water Environment Federation (WEF). The prestigious national award celebrates excellence and innovation in the execution of projects and programs in the water sector.
Since 2007, Barr served as lead consultant for this sustainable urban redevelopment project, which came to fruition through a close partnership that included the project owner, the City of Saint Paul Public Works Department, together with the Capitol Region Watershed District and Ryan Companies. The project partners received the award during a WEF event in Chicago on Sept. 29, 2025, which was attended by Barr’s project leads, Senior Civil Engineer Matt Metzger and Vice President and Senior Water Resources Engineer Nathan Campeau.
Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter said in the City’s news release, “This award is a credit to all the people who showed up, shared ideas, and worked toward a shared goal. Together, we created something that reflects the best of our city—strong, inclusive, and built for the future.”
The effort transformed a 135-acre site that previously housed a Ford assembly plant into a vibrant, mixed-use community asset that features rain gardens, ponds, and a daylighted stream—the upper reach of Hidden Falls Creek. An underground storage and filtration system manages and treats stormwater to improve community resiliency and help protect Mississippi River water quality.
“Highland Bridge’s district stormwater system achieves the community’s vision for restoring our natural resources and celebrating water: ultimately building a beautiful public realm, creating and connecting natural spaces, providing the heart of a new neighborhood, and cleaning polluted stormwater to protect our water resources,” Nathan Campeau said in a City of Saint Paul news release.
Barr’s role in the project included working with the City of Saint Paul and the Capitol Region Watershed District to develop and analyze options for redevelopment of the Ford site after its closure in 2011; developing a district stormwater management plan; completing the final design for Ryan Companies; and providing construction administration services. The stormwater management infrastructure captures and cleans an estimated 64 million gallons of stormwater annually.