Client

Pinellas County Utilities

Location

St. Petersburg, FL

Services

Wastewater Engineering

Accolades

2024 Design-Build Institute of America Florida Region Honor Award

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Originally constructed in 1962, South Cross Bayou Advanced Water Reclamation Facility (AWRF) is Pinellas County’s largest water reclamation facility. With a focus on reclaimed water production and resource recovery, the facility plays a vital role in serving the local community. When the existing headworks and grit removal systems began showing signs of normal wear and tear, Pinellas County elected to modernize these components to maintain operational efficiency.

66
MGD facility
120
MGD bypass capability
1
strong design-build partnership

Consolidating 2 Into 1

Gresham Smith was selected as part of a design-build team with Garney Construction to provide improvements to the aging pretreatment infrastructure. The award-winning project consolidated two influent components—the headworks and grit removal process—into a single headworks facility equipped with a new odor control system and a septage receiving station.

The upgrades included flow metering and sampling, four fine-screening channels with band screens and washer/compactors, and three stacked-tray grit removal systems with associated grit pumping and classifiers. The facility is capable of treating an average of 66 million gallons per day (MGD) with bypass capabilities of up to 120 MGD.

Maintaining Operations & Outreach

The design-build team successfully maintained plant operations throughout the project thanks to the carefully executed bypass sequencing and maintenance plan. The project also included effective community outreach to minimize disruption to residents, particularly given the facility’s location between two neighborhoods. The leading-edge project ensures that the South Cross Bayou AWRF continues to deliver reliable and sustainable service to Pinellas County residents and businesses.