Minnesota Power developed a new 10 megawatt (MW) solar facility of approximately 80 acres at the Minnesota National Guard’s Camp Ripley site in the northern part of the state. As a subcontractor to Hunt Electric Corporation, Barr provided civil engineering services related to construction of the project, which was the first utility-scale solar facility permitted and constructed in Minnesota.
Barr prepared the civil engineering design, including road-way layout and elevation design. We conducted hydrologic and hydraulic analyses to evaluate stormwater-runoff flow paths, designed drainage features, and developed a grading plan to reduce site slopes and minimize low areas where water could pool. Stormwater runoff is directed into centralized swales and conveyed through culverts under the site-access roads. We also prepared a construction SWPPP for the site and designed interior and perimeter roads to provide access for delivery trucks and emergency vehicles.