Community Creating Rain Garden In Stanton Heights

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- It once was a weed-filled median between Stanton Heights and Lawrenceville, but that's all changed.

"This is the first step of what we hope is going to be a rain garden and eventually a really beautiful sign. We are repainting the steps. We are planting hops to cover up a wall that is sort of crumbling a little bit. We really are trying to make this a more attractive space that tells people 'this is our neighborhood, we are really proud of our neighborhood,'" said Anna Johnson with the Stanton Heights Neighborhood Association.

The first phase of the revitalization is being paid for with a Love Your Block grant, a combined effort between the City of Pittsburgh and Peoples Gas.

"Volunteers, just folks that have come to our community meetings. We have social events and they show up. They are all just really interested in just making the neighborhood look beautiful and just coming together as a community," said Stanton Heights Neighborhood Association President Jessica Varone.

It is the second "greenification" event they held this spring.

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"At least 20 people came out. This is actually the second work-day. We had one a couple weeks back and we had thirty-some people came out, so we are getting really great turnout. People are just really excited about coming out, meeting their neighbors, and working on a project that does something that is a real benefit to the community," Johnson said.

This phase focuses on making a rain garden, filled with native plants to serve a very specific purpose.

"We are working with PWSA to get some curb cuts here so that storm water can run-off here into the garden and prevent some of our sewer overflows or help in that area," said Varone.

The neighborhood association has applied for a PWSA storm water grant that will help them with phase two of their work, so they can continue changing the city one block at a time.