City hopes innovative ‘rain gardens’ will curb flooding in SE Queens

New rain gardens in Cambria Heights and Queens Village will reduce flooding and stormwater runoff in Jamaica Bay. Photo courtesy of the Department of Environmental Protection.

By Victoria Merlino

Two hundred new curbside rain gardens are coming to Cambria Heights and Queens Village, the New York City Department of Environmental Protection announced last Friday. The gardens, which are specially designed to absorb up to 2,500 gallons of stormwater whenever it rains, will work to reduce flooding in the neighborhoods and draw polluted runoff away from Jamaica Bay. 

“Southeast Queens has dealt with flooding for decades,” area Councilmember I. Daneek Miller said in a statement. “We're glad to see DEP using their full toolbox of flood mitigation measures to alleviate this persistent problem for our residents, and look forward to seeing their full implementation throughout Cambria Heights and Queens Village.”

The de Blasio Administration has allocated $1.9 billion to this and other projects to combat flooding in Southeast Queens.

Rain gardens are built into city sidewalks with curb cuts that let stormwater flow into them. Each garden is approximately five feet deep, with spaces within the stone and soil that can store stormwater. Hardy plants in the garden promotes increased water capacity. 

The city estimates that the 200 gardens will collect over 20 million gallons of stormwater each year. Construction on the gardens began earlier this year, and will be completed by 2021. To date, the city has built over 4,000 rain gardens throughout the city.