PWD’s newest business assistance grant program encourages stormwater project aggregation!
 
Join the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) on Monday, July 21st from 8:30-10:00 a.m. at 1101 Market St, 11th floor conference room to learn more about the newly launched Greened Acre Retrofit Program Grant (GARP).

GARP provides grant assistance to companies or contractors for stormwater projects on non-residential properties with a total project size of over 10 acres or larger located in Philadelphia’s combined sewer area.  Currently, PWD is seeking applicants who are companies or project aggregators that can assemble large areas, often over multiple properties, for stormwater management projects.  Properties undergoing redevelopment are not eligible for GARP funding. GARP applications will be evaluated by PWD staff based on a variety of criteria including total area managed, cost to PWD, quality of long-term maintenance plan, and availability of matching funds. GARP is now accepting applications.  Applications can be submitted electronically to PIDC at any time and selected grantees will be issued a decision at the close of each fiscal quarter. 

RSVP now to learn more about this exciting program.

Just in time for summer break, the City of Philadelphia with the Trust for Public Land unveiled a new playground at William Dick Elementary on Tuesday. Residents of North Philadelphia now have the opportunity to spend their days outside at the new schoolyard located on Diamond Street near 24th.

Students opened the ribbon cutting celebration with a local rendition of Pharrell William’s “Happy” and ended it with an impressive gymnastics routine. In between, Mayor Nutter kicked off a round of acknowledgements and congratulations to all the groups responsible for remaking the asphalt parking lot into a much needed green space.

William Dick Elementary is the first Green 2015 project to finish construction. Green 2015 is a plan developed by PennPraxis and put into action by Mayor Nutter with Parks and Recreation, the Water Department, the School District and the Trust for Public Land with funding support from the William Penn Foundation. The goal of the plan is to create 500 new acres of public green space by 2015.

Students from the elementary school played an important role in redesigning the William Dick playground, choosing the play equipment, plants for the rain garden, locations for new trees and important amenities like benches. PWD constructed a rain garden to manage the stormwater runoff from the play area. During the school year, the green space will be utilized for teaching children about the importance of green infrastructure and how the rain garden helps maintain water quality. In addition to a rain garden, the playground includes benches for relaxation, spinning cups, and additional space for playing sports. The new and improved playground will be open to the public every day -- helping achieve Mayor Nutter’s vision of exposing at least 75 percent of the city’s population to green space within a 10-minute walk.

It’s summer time! What could be better than spending your summer outside in warm weather, then cooling off with a refreshing glass of cold water? Philadelphia’s water has not always been as clean as it is today. In fact, Philadelphia currently enjoys watersheds that are cleaner than they have been in over a century. To ensure our water remains healthy, PWD works behind the scenes to produce about 250 million gallons of high quality drinking water every day.

PWD is excited to start our Two Rivers One Water campaign to keep people in the know about their connection to our water. Take a look at this poster to see how you can lend a hand this summer to make sure our water stays pure. A few ways to help include bagging your dog’s waste, limiting chemical usage, and keeping your storm drains clear.

Well this is certainly a topic that is fresh in everyone’s minds as recent extreme rains have left basements flooded, cars wrecked, roads closed, and our Water Works temporarily out of commission. These events are becoming more frequent as what used to be known as “100-year storms” occur once or twice each decade now. In this region, PWD plays an important role in planning for consequences of global climate change and mitigating the effects of these weather events.

Our primary method of handling this has been to reduce the amount of stormwater run-off that rushes directly into our streams and rivers by investing $40 to $50 million each year to create more acreage to soak that rain into the ground water. We’re also investing $30 million in infrastructure improvements every year to enhance our ability to collect and divert stormwater. Over the next several years we are studying potentially $1 billion in system improvements through our Green City, Clean Waters program. For homeowners, PWD has provided nearly $1.7 million since 2005 to install basement back-up protection devices at 455 homes in the city.

PWD and our partner city agencies are also coordinating response and recovery with other city, state, and federal agencies to provide advanced warning forecasts in advance of large storms. We’re creating tidal and neighborhood flooding projections and vulnerability analyses, revising FEMA flood map, projecting climate change impacts, installing signage in vulnerable areas, reviewing zoning and building codes, and meeting with communities to help guide them through these changes.

PWD has always been forward looking and has anticipated the challenges and opportunities that Philadelphia has faced over the decades. Storm flood relief is a challenge that is only going to get more severe over the next several decades. We continue to focus on the issue as we have for the past several years.