The City of Tacoma, with funding from the Washington State Department of Ecology, recently completed water quality improvement projects in two neighborhoods that combine stormwater management, safer streets, and public art. The work included community engagement and is helping protect and restore water quality in Flett Creek, Chambers Creek, and ultimately, Puget Sound.
The communities had faced deteriorating roadways, missing sidewalks and accessible infrastructure, and untreated stormwater runoff that ultimately threatened water quality and eroded habitat that provided summer spawning grounds for salmon. The project used permeable pavement for stormwater management to enable stormwater to soak into the ground rather than flow into storm drains, keeping pollutants away from waterways.
The Tacoma Municipal Art Program also contributed to the project by adding a public art component to the permeable pavement. Students at a local elementary school learned about the permeable pavement from the City of Tacoma’s Environmental Services staff and wrote poems inspired by nature walks around the school, which will be stamped into the sidewalks in English and Spanish. The Arts & Cultural Vitality Division captured this collaboration in a visual StoryMap. This project demonstrates how combining Low Impact Development, community engagement, and public art can protect water quality while also improving neighborhood vitality.
