Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is continuing its $500,000 project to remove some of the roadside raingardens and restore the planting strips to their original look. One of the bulb-out raingardens that has been filled in with grass. Earlier this week the Department of Planning and Development released SPU’s proposal to remove ten of the 13 …
The Ballard Roadside Raingardens pilot project has been a topic of conversation since they were installed last year. Whether you like them or not, it’s obvious that not all of them are working as designed – something Seattle Public Utilities is not taking lightly. A look at one of the Ballard roadside raingardens Back in …
Last week we wrote about a meeting held between residents who live along the Ballard Roadside Raingarden pilot project (map of project here) and Seattle Public Utilities. At the meeting, residents raised concerns about the ineffectiveness of the raingardens and the design standards. After the meeting, Deputy Director Nancy Ahren said the city would respond …
About six months after Seattle Public Utilities started the Roadside Raingarden Pilot Project in Ballard (.pdf map here), many residents who live next to them are upset. Nearly 75 people gathered to voice their anger, concerns and frustrations to members of Seattle Public Utilities at an emotional meeting Wednesday night. A properly draining raingarden. The …
To help reduce the amount of storm water that flows into the sewers, Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) is building roadside raingardens along 28th Ave NW. The future raingardens are still under construction and some of them are filling up with water during major storms like we had last weekend, and aren’t draining. “The swales have …
Construction of the Roadside Raingardens project in Ballard is scheduled to begin in a few weeks. A total of 77 households will have gardens planted on the city-owned planting strip in front of their property, featuring a variety of plants and trees whose root structure is designed to hold stormwater long enough to absorb into the soil instead of pouring into combined sewer/stormwater pipes.
An example of a roadside raingarden along Linden Ave N in Seattle
Seattle Public Utilities employees were on hand during the final community planning meeting on May 12 to address any last concerns from residents affected by the project.
“It’s a new approach to dealing with sewers,” said SPU project manager Karen York. She said the area has an average of 12 Combined Sewer Overflows per year, when the federal EPA requires an average of one. CSOs happen in older areas of Seattle where sewer and stormwater lines are combined, and during large storms they will sometimes overflow into Puget Sound to prevent sewer backups into people’s homes.
In order to help reduce the amount of storm water that flows into the combined sewer system, Seattle Public Utilities will be constructing roadside raingardens along some Ballard streets. Example of a roadside raingarden. Starting next month, SPU will begin installation of raingardens in the public-right-of-way across ten blocks between NW 65th St and NW …
Designs for the proposed roadside raingardens are almost complete. Seattle Public Utilities is holding a community meeting tonight to discuss the plans, which will affect an area of Ballard. The boundary for the project is 31st Ave NW to 29th Ave NW and NW 85th St to NW 75th St. Also 28th Ave NW between …