TDR HDPE Retention System — Fingerboard Yeshiva & Dormitory, Staten Island, NY

Retention System in Staten Island NY

TDR Pipe supplied the corrugated HDPE pipe for a subsurface stormwater retention system in Staten Island NY at the Fingerboard Yeshiva and Dormitory, a school-and-dormitory redevelopment on West Fingerboard Road. The system uses 36-inch dual-wall HDPE pipe—1,752 linear feet of it—to store 12,384 cubic feet of stormwater beneath the site.

Project overview

The Fingerboard Yeshiva and Dormitory is a proposed educational development at 930A & 930B West Fingerboard Road in the Borough of Staten Island, New York (Block 3197, Lot 1). The site/civil construction documents were issued in March 2025, with plans prepared by AKRF, Inc. The project—reportedly a redevelopment of a former commercial headquarters site on West Fingerboard Road—will bring a yeshiva (school) and a dormitory to a dense, constrained urban parcel. On a site like this, there is little room for surface ponds or open basins, so stormwater has to be stored underground, out of sight, beneath parking and site areas.

The Challenge: A Dense Urban Site Under NYC Stormwater Rules
New York City requires new development to manage stormwater on-site, capturing runoff and releasing it at a controlled rate so it doesn’t overwhelm the city’s sewer system. For an infill site with a large building footprint and limited open space, meeting those NYC DEP stormwater management practice (SMP) requirements meant designing a high-capacity underground system. The design also had to integrate green infrastructure—stormwater planters for water-quality treatment—with a subsurface storage bed sized for the required detention volume, all while fitting precise invert elevations within a tight vertical envelope.

A Retention System in Staten Island NY — The TDR HDPE Solution
The solution centered on a subsurface stormwater retention/detention system built from large-diameter corrugated HDPE pipe. Two storage beds of 36-inch dual-wall HDPE pipe—totaling 1,752 linear feet—were set within a crushed-stone envelope to create a combined storage volume of 12,384 cubic feet across a 9,469-square-foot footprint. Large-diameter HDPE was ideal here: it delivers high storage volume in a compact footprint, resists corrosion for a long maintenance-free life, and provides the structural strength to sit beneath parking and drive areas.

How the System Works
Runoff from the roofs and paved areas is captured by area drains and stormwater planters, then conveyed through 12-inch to 18-inch HDPE laterals into the 36-inch HDPE storage beds. Water is held in both the pipe barrels and the voids of the surrounding stone, then released at a controlled rate, with overflow yard drains handling the largest storm events. The stormwater planters (such as the 224-square-foot SWP-04 and 450-square-foot SWP-13) provide green-infrastructure water-quality treatment, while the HDPE beds provide the storage volume—mirroring the combined green-and-gray infrastructure approach New York City encourages.

Why HDPE for Underground Stormwater Storage
For tight urban sites, corrugated HDPE offers a compelling combination of benefits: it is lightweight and fast to install in constrained excavations, provides high storage capacity per foot, and resists the corrosion and chemical exposure that can degrade other materials over decades. Its structural strength allows it to be buried beneath parking and traffic areas, and its smooth interior and watertight joints keep the system efficient and leak-resistant. TDR’s HDPE pipe meets AASHTO M294 and ASTM F2306, with watertight joints tested per ASTM D3212—making it well suited to demanding stormwater detention and retention applications.

About TDR HDPE Stormwater Systems
TDR ULTRA® is a dual-wall corrugated high-density polyethylene (HDPE) pipe engineered for gravity-flow stormwater drainage and subsurface storage. Available in 4-inch through 60-inch diameters, it combines a smooth interior liner for hydraulic efficiency with a reinforced corrugated exterior and watertight joints—ideal for detention and retention systems, drainage networks, and green-infrastructure projects. From Texas to New York, TDR Pipe supplies engineered HDPE solutions that help developments meet modern stormwater standards. To specify TDR for your next project, contact TDR Pipe® or explore our TDR ULTRA® HDPE pipe.