Transforming Stormwater from Liability to Community Asset

Water management has long been framed as a battle — cities versus stormwater, engineers versus runoff. Suha Atiyeh rejects that framing entirely. In her practice, stormwater isn’t the enemy; it’s one of the most underutilized urban resources available.

That reframe has tangible consequences in the neighborhoods she serves. Across Washington DC, her projects have converted corridors that once absorbed flood damage and blight into green infrastructure systems that deliver multiple benefits simultaneously. Wheeler Road now captures and slowly releases tens of millions of gallons of stormwater annually through bioswales and permeable paving — water that once overwhelmed combined sewer infrastructure and discharged pollutants into the Anacostia River. The same systems that manage that rainfall also cool the street, improve air quality, and create a more attractive environment for pedestrians and businesses.

MLK Jr. Avenue’s activated streetscape demonstrates how water management and economic vitality can reinforce each other. Improved pedestrian conditions, shaded sidewalks, and reduced flooding risk have made the corridor a more viable destination — a public-realm investment that pays dividends beyond its engineering specifications.

At St. Elizabeths Campus and Kenilworth Courts, former flood zones became outdoor community gathering spaces. At Masdar City in the UAE, the same principle extended to desert conditions: rare but intense rainfall events were captured and redirected to support landscaping and aquifer recharge rather than lost to flash-flood channels.

Every one of these outcomes was grounded in rigorous modeling — hydraulic performance verified against pre- and post-construction monitoring, sustainability claims validated through the structured frameworks of LEED AP, Envision, and Estidama Pearl certification. As ICE Mid-Atlantic South Representative, Suha Atiyeh advocates consistently for infrastructure budgets that account for this multiplied value — because when stormwater is managed as a resource, its return on investment dwarfs what traditional approaches can justify.