RainWise outreach grants

RainWise is a partnership program of King County Wastewater Treatment Division (WTD) and Seattle Public Utilities (SPU) that provides rebates for rain gardens and cisterns built on eligible private properties in Seattle. The program uses rain gardens and cisterns to decrease the amount of stormwater going into Seattle’s combined sewer system. When too much stormwater enters that sewer system, it can cause overflows of contaminated water into local bodies of water including Puget Sound, the Duwamish River, and other lakes and bays. 

To be eligible for the RainWise rebate:  

• Your property must be in a RainWise eligible area. 

• The stormwater from the property’s roof must flow through downspouts into the combined sewer system. 

RainWise participants follow these program steps:  

1. Check eligibility -  

   1. Go to seattlerainwise.org and enter property address in the eligibility map 

   2. If the property is in a RainWise eligible area, individuals will be prompted to submit a RainWise Eligibility Form to determine if the property’s stormwater contributes to the combined sewer system. 

2. Connect with a contractor – participants will hire their preferred RainWise-trained contractor after exploring rain garden or cistern design options for the property. Even if a property is in an eligible area, a RainWise rain garden or cistern might not work due to property specific constraints.  

3. Build the project – Contractors build the contract and will walk through the pre-inspection, construction, and post-inspection process with participants.  

4. Rebate application – Participants complete the rebate paperwork with their contractors, and a rebate check will be sent within 4-8 weeks after all forms are received by the program.  

5. Maintaining the RainWise project – Rain gardens and cisterns need regular care to work well. To keep them functioning and looking good, folks should keep up with basic maintenance.  

A RainWise rain garden or cistern has special design specifications and needs to be built by a RainWise trained contractor. It’s easy for a business to become RainWise trained contractors—visit the contractor resources page on our website and click on “Become a RainWise Contractor”. Our team helps promote the program to communities throughout the city to help create demand for contractors’ services. Property owners who want a RainWise project may also hire contractors for maintenance and additional services.  

It’s not only residential properties that are eligible for RainWise. Larger buildings, known affectionately by the RainWise program as “Big Roofs” are typically buildings that have roof areas between 2,000 and 5,000 sqft. Big Roof properties are a great way to make RainWise known throughout neighborhoods! Those community relationships are invaluable to the program. 

A city full of hardscapes like roads, buildings, sidewalks, patios, and parking lots creates a lot of stormwater runoff. Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) is an engineered outdoor space that imitates the characteristics of natural spaces like forests and wetlands that were here before us. Rain gardens and cisterns are just two types of GSI. 

A rain garden is a bowl-shaped garden that uses plants and layers of soil, sand, and mulch to retain rainwater. Rain gardens can reduce the amount of stormwater that reaches storm drains and local waterways. A cistern is a tank used to collect and store stormwater. 

Rain gardens filter runoff and reduce pollutants entering local water bodies. Cisterns can support water conservation. Stored water can be used to water lawns and gardens. Maintenance of rain gardens and cisterns is important to their proper function.