The Water Online Show: How Public And Private Partners Are Transforming Urban Stormwater

The Water Online Show kicks off its new season with an in‑depth discussion on stormwater management, focusing on New York City’s innovative partnership with Arcadis. Guest Shandor Szalay, the National Stormwater Resilience Practice Lead at Arcadis, explains how climate‑driven superstorms and aging urban infrastructure have pushed the city to rethink stormwater strategies. The program, called Resilient NYC Partners, represents a multibillion‑dollar effort to manage stormwater more effectively — especially on older private properties that lack any stormwater controls. Arcadis is responsible for acquiring sites, designing systems, hiring contractors, constructing the projects, and ultimately delivering certified stormwater storage capacity back to NYC’s DEP.

Szalay highlights that the program’s pay‑for‑performance model is what makes it especially unique: Arcadis is compensated only after delivering a measurable amount of stormwater storage. This outcome‑focused approach unlocks innovation, accelerates timelines, reduces costs, and incentivizes efficiency across design, financing, and construction. By working on private properties — such as hospitals, universities, and retail sites — Arcadis installs subsurface chambers, porous pavement, green roofs, rain gardens, and other technologies to capture and infiltrate stormwater. Szalay emphasizes that this model can be adapted by other municipalities, provided they have internal champions and are willing to rethink traditional procurement. The episode underscores how public–private collaboration and performance‑based contracting can transform stormwater management nationwide.