Pirone Park Rain Garden

October, 2017
Picture of Rain Garden at Pirone Park

The Parks Department would like to formally thank all involved in the creation of the rain garden at Pirone Park, which is now officially complete with the final touches artistically done by Bruce Burns and Ryan Januskiewicz (pictured).  For those unfamiliar with the project and its basis, the parking area at Pirone’s upper lot was designed to have the entirety of its storm water runoff into the lower field to the west side of the playground.  During heavy rain, this funneling of water would create a torrent that would rip into the hillside and gouge out a channel that was both unsightly and dangerous.  After years of searching for a viable solution, the DPW, specifically Mark Wetzel and Dan Van Schalkwyk, were able to assist in creating a system for trapping the water as it flowed out of the lot and dissipating through a bioretention cell to ease the impact as it drained into the lower field.  Part of this solution was to create a cell in both a decorative and functional manner.  As you can see by the attached photos, this was done well beyond expectations and will be a great addition to our park.  Thanks to Mark, Dan and all DPW personnel involved in bringing this project to fruition!