The Silver Lining
A bold downsprout design makes winter's deluge...fun?
SE Stephens and 28th
The recently planted rain garden and the rain chain at Colonial Heights Presbyterian were designed and installed with help from members of the East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District.
10th @ Hoyt
The 31,000-square foot courtyard roof of this apartment building channels storm water into three copper and steel downspouts, which carry it to detention reservoirs and a 40-foot long storage cistern (think of a well, but with a waterproof lining). The structures are accented with colored glass studs. “Stormy nights provide an unparalleled, spectacular display of water, dancing lights, and fresh sounds,” says designer Steve Koch of his creation.
NE 11th and Knott
The wheel structure on this residential downspout directs water into a fun, frog-shaped water catchment structure.
Kenton
The home of Marina Wynton, owner of Olivine Design, is a perfect storm of…storm water management with a rain garden, eco-roof, vertical sedum box, and ceramic rain chain. Wynton has received grants for her efforts from the City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services, and implores all Portlanders to look into the discounts on water bills available to those who manage storm water on-site.
New Seasons Seven Corners
The “Rain Man” sculpture at this New Seasons was put in six years ago when the store was built. Designed by Portlander Ivan McLean, it is made of various recycled metal objects (including a toaster), and directs water from the roof into a bioswale. According to the New Seasons website, “A ‘swale’ is a piece of land that is lower and usually more marshy and more damp than surrounding areas.” They absorb and filter storm water runoff.
On SE Brooklyn St., Inner SE
Designed by Amy Whitworth of Plan-It-Earth Design, and installed by Apogee Landscapes, this residential downspout opens onto a stone pathway, which directs water into a rain garden.
EVERY YEAR, the average-size Portland roof sloughs off 22,500 gallons of rainwater. Downspouts send much of that flood tide straight to the sewers, which sometimes overflow into the poor Willamette River. While many Portlanders simply redirect downspouts into their yards, more creative management can provide a rare psychological victory over the vindictive Weather Gods. (You may reign o’er us—but you will never defeat our tasteful native plant gardens!) In that spirit, we salute one of the city’s most ingenious downspouts, at the N Williams Avenue headquarters of the East Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District. Some key features:
A design by pioneering Seattle downspout artist Buster Simpson and local ecological designer Peg Butler. Simpson started designing for the Northwest’s rain in the ’70s. This two-story, 19-foot-long squiggle is made entirely of stainless steel. (Metro, the regional government, kicked in about $10,000 to fund it.) District executive director Jean Fike says the sculptural zigzag turns Portland’s pluvial challenge into a thing of beauty.
Milk pails containing native plants, including rushes, sedges, and ferns. The pails symbolize the conservation district’s rural roots. According to Butler, the buckets hark back to village-scale communal water wells and volunteer fire brigades.
A bottom bucket angled to pour into a drain that ultimately directs into a rain garden. The trench drain flows alongside a water-permeable, wheelchair-accessible walkway.
While not everyone can grab a government subsidy, the city Water Bureau does offer discounts to anyone who disconnects their downspouts from the sewer system or takes other measures. Candace Stoughton, the conservation district’s low-impact development specialist, says creative downspouts can be made of anything from bamboo to PVC piping. “Stormwater doesn’t have to be boring,” she says. “It can be exciting and artistic.”
Published: January 2011
Correction to article: The Bureau of Environmental Services (not the Water Bureau) provides two financial incentives for property owners and ratepayers interested in managing stormwater:
Clean River Rewards, which an ongoing discount that is available to any stormwater ratepayer in the city for managing stormwater safely on their property; and
The Downspout Disconnection Program, which provides a one-time payment for pre-approved work within the Eastside Combined Sewer area.
Anyone interested in finding out more should go online to www.portlandonline.com/bes
No “government subsidy”? then go to bustersimpson.net and click on “growing vine street” one of the images illustrates a “blue collar home plumber kit special” with off the shelf plumbing parts.
It is important is note the “U” shaped pipe which provides a water table for the plants. The water table level in the planter will determine the plant species. Calculate the roof watershed flow and place internal freeze thaw absorbers in water to prevent ice expansion and rupture of pipe.