43^rd Street Outfall Basin Study

The 43rd Street Outfall ditch drains are in an urbanized section of Tampa approximately 1,120-acres in size.  The basin mostly follows the alignment of 40th Street (SR 585A and SR 45) with several large highways crossing the basin including I-4, SR 60 and the Crosstown Expressway.  The basin experiences chronic flooding at several locations, including the Hillsborough Area Regional Transit (HART) headquarters. The basin overtops several City streets along the ditch.  Flooding disrupts safe traffic flow, inundates buildings, damages infrastructure and private property and can cause severe damage to HART buses. 

DRMP’s plan to improve flood protection for the 43rd Street Outfall basin will involve multiple phases and include property acquisitions for ponds, utilization of FDOT and City road rights-of-way and coordination with the CSX Corporation for bore/jack operations under railroad tracks.  Providing stormwater treatment in ponds is an important component of the recommendations as Tampa Bay is the receiving water for the project and is identified by FDEP as impaired from nutrients.  With flood protection and water quality improvements in mind, the City of Tampa, HART and the Southwest Florida Water Management District (SWFWMD) are partnering to fund the recommendations of this project.