City of Puyallup

Puyallup Stormwater

8th Ave NW LID Retrofit Project

The green infrastructure project currently in design for 8th Ave NW is wrapping up the design phase. Read more about the this project and current status on the 8th Ave NW project page.

Final Storm Drainage Comprehensive Plan

The updated Storm Drainage Comprehensive Plan is in final format and available for reference. The Plan was presented to the Planning Commission in November 2011, posted to this website and circulated to interested parties on request for review and comment, and presented to Council for adoption in March 2012.

Impact of a Single  Tree

Check out the National Tree Benefit Calculator from www.treebenefits.com and see the impact a single tree can make. A tree planted at home can increase your property value and also provides a number of environmental benefits - from improvements to water quality in local streams, to air quality improvements. Check out the tree calculator and see how you could help improve the environment by planting a tree!

Current Stormwater Projects

In addition to Stormwater Programs - such as Puyallup's Rain Gardens and Fish-Friend Car Washing - the Stormwater Department is currently working on the various projects listed below. Read more on the Stormwater Projects page, click on the available links below for more information on any of these projects, or contact the Stormwater Department for more information.

• 8th Ave NW LID Retrofit
• Clarks Creek Riparian Restoration and Porous Maintenance Road
• Porous Alley Initiative
• Silver-Meeker Creek Restoration
• Linden Oxbow Setback Levee, design
• Stormwater Parcels, Demolition Projects

Stormwater Management Staff

Steve Carstens, P.E.
Stormwater Engineer
(253)841-5597, email

Steve Carstens, P.E. was born and raised in Tacoma. He graduated from Washington State University with a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering in 1998 and also has a Bachelor of Science degree in Construction Management which he received in 1989. Steve has Project Management experience with construction firms in both western and eastern Washington. He also has consultant engineering experience working for a local structural engineering firm. With over 10 years experience working with Pierce County in the Bridge Engineering section, as well as Planning and Land Services, Steve brings considerable experience and expertise to the city of Puyallup. Additional work experience has also included active work with Low Impact Development (LID) in association with the Rails to Trails program. His extensive design background working with the Ecology's Storm Manual and NPDES permit requirements further builds on his impressive qualifications to serve at the City's Stormwater Engineer. Steve started working for the City of Puyallup in October, 2011.

Joy Rodriguez
Associate Stormwater Engineer
(253)841-5549, email

Joy Rodriguez holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering from California State University, Sacramento (2001) and has passed the FE exam. Joy's work in stormwater includes support to the Stormwater Engineer on NPDES-compliance activities and reporting,  public education and outreach, grant management, development of website content, research and development of funding opportunities, management of stormwater programs, support for TMDL-related activities and plan development, and support on collaborating partnerships with local organizations, jurisdictions and businesses.

Prior to the City, Joy performed work as a researcher in automotive accident reconstruction for seven years. Activities included research and analysis of pedestrian, single- and multi-vehicle collisions related to products liability and roadway design. Analysis included field documentation, analysis of roadway design including sight distance, roadway structure, maintenance, traffic signal function and analysis, crash test analysis, simulation, energy analysis reconstruction, federal report authoring, publishing, and courtroom presentation development.

Joy began working for the City in June 2010.

Kendall Wals
Business Outreach Specialist, Local Source Control Program
(253)770-3364, email

After completing her bachelor's degree in Planning and Environmental Policy at Western Washington University (2010) Kendall began work with the City as an Intern in the Planning Department. Her experience and outreach skills made her a perfect fit for the City's new 100% grant-funded Local Source Control Program and was hired full time in 2012 in a temporary position.

Kendall's work includes providing technical assistance and education to local small businesses to help them maintain compliance with environmental regulations while providing information on best management business practices to reduce exposure of hazardous and dangerous waste to the environment.