The Central Ohio Rain Garden Initiative (CORGI) was established in 2007 to promote rain gardens for clean water and community beautification. In 2010, CORGI had 169 rain gardens collecting over 46.5 million gallons of rainwater, up from only 3 gardens in 2006. CORGI provides education through workshops and materials, technical assistance for rain garden installation, and partnered with local groups on projects like installing 18 residential rain gardens in Westerville's Brook Run neighborhood to reduce stormwater pollution. CORGI secured over $250,000 in grants to fund education, outreach and demonstration projects in 2010.
2. OUR MISSION: To promote the benefits of rain gardens for
community beautification and clean water
Steering Committee Members
Traci Aquara Heart of Ohio RC&D Council
Carol Bessey Franklin County Master Gardeners
Eric Beverly City of Westerville
Paula Brooks Franklin County Commissioner
Tony Collins City of Gahanna Parks & Recreation
Mary Ann Core NRCS
Laura Fay FLOW
Amy Dutt Urban Wild/FLOW
Catherine Eichel Brown & Caldwell
Jennifer Fish Franklin Soil and Water
David Hull City of Columbus
Kristi Crissinger Friends of the Scioto River
Alan Little City of Gahanna Parks & Recreation
Maureen Lorenz City of Columbus Parks & Recreation
Jodee Lowe City of Grove City
Kari Mackenbach URS Corp.
Mary Maloney Chadwick Arboretum/Master Gardeners
Brian McCombs City of Delaware
Kelly McCutcheon Malcolm Pirnie
Deba Mohler Heart of Ohio RC&D Council
Tina Mohn City of Columbus Parks & Recreation
David Moore Tetra Tech
Anita Musser City of Columbus Dept. of Public Utilities
Kaylee Port City of Marysville/Union Soil and Water
Alex Rozanski City of Dublin
Tom Russell City of Columbus Sewers and Drains
David Rutter MORPC
AJ Smith BBC&M Engineering, Inc.
Stephanie Suter Franklin Soil and Water
Vinnie Tremante Williams Creek Consulting
Matt Trokan Sierra Club
Joe Tribble FLOW
Emily Weber Franklin Soil and Water
Kim Williams FLOW
Frank Wiseman City of Westerville
MAIN GOAL: To Collect 1 billion gallons of water through
rain garden establishment
3. The Central Ohio Rain Garden Initiative (CORGI) was established in 2007 and is a collaborative effort to
promote the benefits of rain gardens for community beautification and clean water. 2010 was the third
year of the initiative and the most productive in our existence. The following are some interesting facts
about the rapid growth of rain gardens in central Ohio:
♦ In 2006, there were only 3 reported rain gardens in central Ohio.
♦ In 2008, there were 23 rain gardens that collected approximately 800,000 gallons of rainwater.
♦ At the close of 2010, there were 169 reported rain gardens that collected over 46.5 million
gallons of rainwater.
♦ An additional 20 to 30 rain gardens are in the planning stages for early 2011 construction.
This annual report outlines CORGI’s strategic goals and objectives and the progress made during 2010.
We look forward to partnering with you in 2011 to provide education and technical assistance to help
with rain garden assessment, design, and planting plans. Assistance is available for residents, community
organizations, municipalities, and businesses.
Sincerely,
Stephanie A. Suter
Steering Committee Chairperson
4. EDUCATION
Goal: Educate central Ohio residents regarding the benefits of rain gardens for community
beautification and clean water.
Accomplishments:
♦ Developed technical outreach brochure for education; 6,000 were distributed in 2010.
♦ Developed and produced a suggested planting list.
♦ Obtained marketing materials – CORGI coffee mugs and rain garden yard signs were procured
for public outreach.
♦ A PowerPoint presentation was developed and used for public education and outreach.
♦ Two rain garden workshops:
• October 2008: A mixed workshop for residents and technical professionals was
conducted at ODOT with approximately 150 in attendance. Coffee mugs were given out.
• May 2010: A residential workshop was conducted for approximately 30 attendees.
♦ Governor’s Green Halloween Event – A booth with outreach materials was manned by CORGI
volunteers. Coffee mugs were given out.
♦ Hosted social event for nursery owners and local growers to identify potential outreach
opportunities.
♦ Twenty-seven residential rain gardens were installed this year.
♦ Canal Winchester Middle School – Assisted an after school program with rain garden education
and installation.
♦ Indianola Children’s Center Rain Garden – Coordinated with Friends of the Lower Olentangy
Watershed and Amy Dutt on the construction of a rain garden.
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♦ Annehurst Elementary School - K-5 grade students planted this rain garden used for
educational tours. There are three more elementary schools that want to implement a similar
program for their schools in 2011.
♦ Linworth High School – Assisted with rain garden planning for installation on Earth Day.
♦ Dublin Coffman High School – Provided technical support for a rain garden design that was
installed as part of a senior project.
♦ Dublin Sells Elementary School – Provided technical support to the school for the design and
construction of a rain garden.
♦ Marburn Academy – Provided technical assistance for the design and construction of a rain
garden.
♦ Athens Soil and Water Conservation District – Presented CORGI organization and “lessons
learned” to assist in their startup of a similar rain garden initiative in Athens County.
♦ Developed a ranking system to select targeted neighborhoods for rain garden installation.
♦ Over 270,000 people reached (website, news articles, workshops, brochures, and TV news).
5. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE
Goal: Provide technical assistance to central Ohio residents, local governments, and other public and
private entities regarding the installation of rain gardens.
Accomplishments: In addition to the technical assistance outlined under the EDUCATION goals above,
we have accomplished the following:
♦ Model code and ordinance language has been developed by the Steering Committee and will be
posted to the website in 2011.
♦ Provided input on downspout disconnection to the Westerville Service Department and the City
of Gahanna.
Brook Run Demonstration Project. In 2010, CORGI installed 18 residential and six roadside rain
gardens in Westerville’s Brook Run neighborhood. This project, funded by OEPA’s Ohio
Environmental Education Fund, reached over 270,000 central Ohio residents through educational
brochures and workshops, newsletters, news articles, and television news stories. Storm water
monitoring both before and after the installation of rain gardens will determine how effective they
are in reducing storm water from the area and preventing it from entering and polluting Condit-
Nichols Ditch, a tributary to Spring Run in the Alum Creek Watershed. CORGI partnered with Franklin
Soil and Water Conservation District and The Ohio State University on this project.
Additional details and project updates on this project can be found under the “Our Projects” tab of
the CORGI website at:
www.centralohioraingardens.org
6. FUNDING
Goal: Identify and secure funding sources for CORGI and rain garden planning, design, construction, and
monitoring.
Accomplishments:
♦ Formed a Funding Committee to identify resources to support
the mission and goals of CORGI.
♦ Scioto Gardens, Spence Restoration, and URS provided
suggested planting lists to use as resource information.
♦ Secured an Ohio Environmental Education Fund Grant that
paid for development of the CORGI website, 15,000 rain
garden brochures, and residential rain garden construction for
the Brook Run Demonstration Project (approximately $50,000).
♦ CORGI partnered with The Ohio State University and the
Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District on a grant from
the Ohio Water Development Authority for the Brook Run Demonstration
Project to enhance the monitoring and install right-of-way rain gardens in
addition to the residential rain gardens (approximately $200,000).
♦ Created educational and outreach signs and made them available for sale
to build a project fund – eight signs have been sold to date.
WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT
Goal: Create and maintain an educational CORGI website to promote our mission and goals.
Accomplishment: www.centralohioraingardens.org
7. OUR PARTNERS
Franklin Soil and Water Conservation District Sierra Club, Ohio Chapter
Franklin County Board of Commissioners Friends of the Lower Olentangy Watershed
Natural Resources Conservation Service Friends of Alum Creek and Tributaries
Heart of Ohio RC&D Council Friends of the Scioto River
City of Columbus Malcolm Pirnie
City of Delaware Tetra Tech
City of Dublin Urban Wild
City of Gahanna BBC&M Engineering
City of Grove City URS Corp.
City of Marysville Williams Creek Consulting
City of Westerville Brown and Caldwell
Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission Franklin County Master Gardeners
OSU Chadwick Arboretum & Learning Gardens
