Construction crews on Aug. 3 completed the roof on the McKinley Water Vault, a six-million-gallon concrete tank that will temporarily store water in East Sacramento.
Located underneath George “Butter” Cole Field in McKinley Park, the tank will reduce street flooding that occurs in surrounding neighborhoods during large storms.
The completion of the roof included the pouring of about 150 cubic yards of concrete onto the below-ground tank.
“This [project] should have great benefits for East Sacramento in terms of reducing flooding and sanitary sewer outflows,” said District 3 Councilmember Jeff Harris. “But what’s really exciting is that we’re going to be starting park improvements as soon as this is covered.”
Led by the City’s Department of Utilities, the vault covers one and a half football fields and is expected to temporarily hold the equivalent of 11 Olympic-sized swimming pools when full.
“One of the things I’m most proud of with this project is our commitment to the community,” said Yvette Rincon, chief of staff for the Department of Utilities. “We’ve kept the project on schedule and under budget while our staff have made a big effort to minimizing construction impacts on the neighborhood.”
The McKinley Water Vault will work by temporarily storing waste and storm water that frequently floods East Sacramento streets during heavy rains. During large storms the combined storm water and wastewater can come back out of the underground pipes and onto streets, also called outflows. The water is eventually released into a combined sewer system to later be treated.
Once completed, the tank will be covered with two feet of soil. On top of it will be several new park amenities, including a multi-purpose sports field, improved pedestrian path, picnic area and new landscaping.
“This is really an incredible project, and it’s getting in the home-run stretch,” Harris said.
Staff expect the McKinley Water Vault to be completed in Summer 2021.