REPORT TO PARKS & RECREATION COMMISSION
SUBJECT
Title
Report on an Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Water Quality Improvement Fund Grant Award and Receive Public Input on Bowers Park Parking Lot Improvement Project
Report
BACKGROUND
On August 20, 2019, Council approved the City of Santa Clara's Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) Plan. The Plan requires construction and retrofit of low impact development (LID) measures in storm drain infrastructure on public and private lands, including streets, storm drains, parking lots, and building roofs among others. GSI refers to sustainable storm drain infrastructure that reduces runoff volumes, disperses runoff to vegetated areas, promotes water adsorption into the ground, and treats runoff before it reaches the creeks and Bay. Examples of these facilities include pervious pavement, infiltration basins, bioretention facilities (or raingardens) and green roofs.
City-owned surface parking lots provide an excellent opportunity to install multi-benefit GSI retrofit facilities to enhance environmental sustainability. Parking lots contain large impervious surfaces that generate runoff containing pollutants from vehicles and waste from surrounding areas, such as trash, sediment, metals, PCBs and microplastics. While parking lot and street runoff typically contain similar types and concentrations of pollutants, parking lots are easier than streets to retrofit with GSI due fewer underground utilities crossing the parking lots. Parking lots also offer opportunities to add tree canopy, bike parking, energy-efficient lighting, ADA upgrades, improved pedestrian circulation, and other facilities to achieve environmental and community benefits beyond water quality improvement and control of local flooding. Currently, there is no allocated City funding to construct GSI and limited funding available to re-pave City-owned parking lots.
In April 2020, the City's Department of Public Works (DPW) partnered with the City of Palo Alto...
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