Stratford All-Wheels Park LID Project 

The Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA) partnered with the City of Stratford to implement an All-Wheels Park Low Impact Development (LID) Project to address an existing drainage issue in the city’s skate park. After a rainfall, sections of the park as well as the all-wheels ramps would be inaccessible due to the standing water caused by the rain. To address this, the LID project included three rain gardens totaling 125 square metres along with improved grading to capture the runoff into the rain gardens.  

The crew responsible for creating the rain gardens.

After the rain gardens were created, native wildflowers were planted by students from Stratford District Secondary School to create habitat for a variety of pollinators. The project will also include a community education component to explain the function of the rain gardens and the benefits of using LIDs as a natural and effective solution to stormwater control.  

The finished product with native plantings.

Funding for this project was provided by the Government of Ontario, Optimist Club of Stratford, City of Stratford Energy and Environment Committee, the Stratford Civic Beautification and Environmental Awareness Committee and the Stratford District Secondary School Eco Club.