Tidal Creek Co-op - Wilmington, North Carolina

Description

The Surfrider Club at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington (UNCW) worked with the Surfrider-Cape Fear Chapter member) on the idea to create an OFG in the landscaping between a popular shopping center's and a defunct movie theater-plus-parking lot (owned by UNCW). The project helped UNCW comply with stormwater regulations that were a condition of wanting to build on the property.

Grants helped to fund the project. Erin Carey, Watershed Coordinator for the City of Wilmington’s Stormwater Services, who helped to write a successful grant and assist with coordinating the project. Erin also brought it North Carolina State University (NCSU) Professor Dr. Bill Hunt and a team of students to help with surveying the land, created a design and help install it. In addition to all the elements to mimic the original conditions of the site, the design called for an outlet drain to a stormwater pipe in case there was a rainstorm of 4 inches or more. The most polluted part of a storm, known as the “first flush,” comes in the first 1-2 inches.

So in April 2014, construction began:

Earth moving was provided at a discount by Dragonfly Pond Works and paid for out of the Heal Our Wateways budget. Supervision of that work was done by Jon Page, who works with Dr. Hunt.
UNCW's roles included: Dr. Shew's class in Environmental Field Methods did a study on the soils and infiltration rates of the site; UNCW's Landscape Services (LS) was key to soil storage/removal; LS and Dr. Shew collaborated on acquiring native plants; UNCW engaged in planning and even design discussions.
Cuts were made in parking lot curbs to allow water to flow more easily into the garden.
The City of Wilmington donated crew labor, materials, and equipment (the outlet structure and associated pipe was donated by the City, and there was work in the Department of Transportation's right-of-way that needed to be done to connect the outlet structure to the stormwater system).
At the workday, 20 volunteers worked for 8 hours! Led by crew leaders, they planted all native plants (most of the volunteers planting were UNCW students), installed swales to slow down, direct and absorb the water, and applied mulch. Grant monies paid for plants and for the students' travel. The installation got some great tv coverage, too.

The garden was completed in early May 2014 and "went to work" quickly! Sean was on-site during rainstorms and a hurricane, and saw that the garden sponged-up 2-3 inch storms. To help educate visitors, signage will be installed. Also, a public ribbon cutting ceremony will happen in September.

There is a phase 2 project planned: do other areas closer to the cinema building to control flow coming into the garden. Dr. Shew wants to do analysis of the volume of sediment coming off the parking lot. Also EVS students could be involved in measuring the garden’s effectiveness. The UNCW Club is part of new-student orientation, introducing the students to OFG issues on campus. In addition, the Club partners with the University’s Landscape Services on educating students about existing bio-retention ponds. They table on campus to reach the 11,000 student body. The Cape Fear Chapter talks about OFG during their movie showings on the deck in the middle of the OFG area.

The garden serves as both an educational and functional centerpiece for the Heal Our Waterways Program, the outreach and project management component of the Bradley and Hewletts Creeks Watershed Restoration Plan. As Erin says, the community can see the garden as just a larger example of what they can do at home, work and at public sites. Part of Erin’s job is doing site evaluations for private property such as homes and businesses: she brings along pictures of the garden as a model. Local landscape professionals will learn from it, too. The garden will be featured on the Wilmington low-impact design tour. NCSU's Engineering Summer Camp stopped by on a tour.