This detail shows shad depicted in the new West Phila. mural created by Eurhi Jones and Mike Reali. Credit: Philadelphia Water

What happens when the nation’s boldest green infrastructure program meets the nation’s boldest mural arts program in a vacant West Philly lot?

The public is invited see for themselves at the Heston Rain Garden Mural Dedication & Ribbon Cutting event, to be held on Wednesday, October 5 at 3:30 p.m. at 55th and Hunter streets in the Hestonville neighborhood.

Join Philadelphia Water, Parks and Recreation, the Mural Arts Program, Councilman Curtis Jones, the Hestonville Civic Association and community members in celebrating the first Green City, Clean Waters vacant land transformation, a project that turned an empty lot into a green space that manages stormwater, protects local waterways, and features a vibrant water-themed mural from Philly artists Eurhi Jones and Mike Reali.

It seems as if everyone in Philadelphia has had enough of the wet spring we've been having.

Picking up on those soggy feelings, CBS Philly did a short segment on one great way to cope with all the showers—our Rain Check program.
Check out the rain barrel setup and beautiful planter in the video below, and think about signing up for Rain Check to get a stormwater tool for your home:

While being part of the Rain Check program won't chase the clouds away, you can help to keep excess stormwater out our sewers and protect Philly's rivers while getting a free barrel or reduced-cost downspout planter, rain garden or permeable patio. Water collected in rain barrels can be used for things like watering flowers, and planters and rain gardens are a great way of adding landscaping to your property that also happens to protect the environment.

Click here to learn about other green home improvement projects and to sign up for a Rain Check workshop that will help you find the right stormwater tool for your home!

Ditch the Concrete: This yard was depaved through Philadelphia Water’s Rain Check program, which helps homeowners build and pay for green tools that beautify properties and improve local water quality. Credit: Philadelphia Water

Concrete and asphalt — not exactly materials you associate with the beauty of spring in Philadelphia, right?

In addition to being unpleasant to look at, these materials contribute to the urban “heat island” effect, amplify noise pollution, and divert water from storms into our (often overwhelmed) sewer system instead of allowing it to slowly filter into the ground naturally.

That last problem—the water-repelling or “impervious” nature of roofs, driveways, sidewalks and concrete-covered backyards—is something that Philadelphia Water has been working to address through our Rain Check program. By educating and working with homeowners through Rain Check, we’ve made hundreds of properties in the city not only more beautiful, but also better at managing stormwater that can damage homes and pollute our waterways. We’ve also given away over 4,000 free rain barrels to Philadelphia residents since 2006.

We want to hear from Point Breeze residents as we explore plans to turn two vacant lots into green space that will make Philly's rivers cleaner.

You’re invited! Join Philadelphia Water and Councilman Kenyatta Johnson’s office to discuss plans for rain gardens on two publicly owned vacant lots in Point Breeze. Rain gardens are specially designed gardens that soak up stormwater when it rains.