Downtown Des Moines Rain Garden Project

Des Moines, Iowa (August 3, 2011) – Downtown Des Moines received one more oasis of green with the completion of a landscape renovation project at The Cathedral Church of St. Paul, 815 High Street. With the help of numerous state and local partners, St. Paul’s took a portion of a large church parking lot and converted it back to a highly functional and aesthetically pleasing natural area. The new green space includes numerous tree and native plants, a rain garden, a bioretention cell, porous pavement and other features designed to reduce stormwater run-off and impurities in the water.

A ceremonial tree planting and garden dedication took place at the church site on Wednesday, August 3rd.  Various partners will spoke about the value of such a project in downtown Des Moines, including stormwater management, improved air and water quality, environmental educational opportunities for nearby schools, and increased wildlife habitat. Representatives from Trees Forever coordinated a tree planting demonstration and discussed the many other benefits of trees and native plants.

Trees Forever helped fund and coordinate the installation of plant materials for this project as part of a special program funded by the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation. The goals of that program are to demonstrate techniques to improve water quality in the Upper Mississippi River Basin and to enhance wildlife habitat in the area.

Local news station KCCI broadcasted live from this event.  View the video.