Sunrise Pump Station

Sunrise Pump Station is a new water pumping station situated on ten acres of public open space along the Ohio River in downtown Evansville. The pump station prevents clean water from backing up into the city when floodgates are closed on the Ohio River levee. Instead, water is pumped up and over the levee and down a cascade into the Ohio River. Before the pump station was built, the site was home to Sunrise Park, one of Evansville’s most loved and well-used playgrounds. The playground was reaching the end of its life cycle, and a site selection study determined that the city needed to build the new pump station on the existing pipes under the park.


Client:

Evansville Water and Sewer Utility

Project Size:

Location:

Evansville, IN

Team:

Status:

Completed in 2023

Services:

Landscape Architecture

In Association With:

Donohue Associates

Awards:

Photography:

Evansville Water & Sewer Utility

Working with the design team, we facilitated stakeholder meetings with city officials and multiple public meetings to gather “big ideas” for the future of the site and Evansville’s riverfront. We developed a plan that established a series of recreational rooms along the levee: new children’s playground, skatepark, court sports, and spray park. A riverfront greenway links all the spaces and offers panoramic views of the Ohio River. The greenway departs the levee at a new river overlook plaza and leads you to the park-like grounds of Sunrise Pump Station.

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Rather than build a windowless pump station, our team challenged the city to invite the public to the space and educate them about this critical infrastructure. The pump station and its grounds have become the southern anchor of the city’s urban riverfront. The new pump station includes the necessary 40 million gallons-per-day pump system, a water quality laboratory for city utility staff, and public event space with future educational exhibits. Outside, rain gardens collect run off from the rooftop events deck and permeable pavers take up water from the parking lots, demonstrating green infrastructure applications for everyone.

The project is slated for ENVISION certification, a distinction earned through the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure.

“The Sunrise Pump Station and Cascade demonstrate how environmental solutions can coexist with community spaces, transforming utility sites into sought-after downtown destinations... It’s an example of what we can achieve when we come together as a community.” Lane Young, EWSU Executive Director, upon receiving the 2023 AIM Community Placemaking Award

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