Urban Cost Share

ERA Urban Cost-share Program:

Funds for stormwater improvements

The urban cost-share program will provide grant funds to people in urban critical areas of the Elkhart River Watershed to install stormwater management practices that improve water quality. These include the following practices:

Rain Garden - Elkhart Environmental Center

Rain Gardens
Rain Barrels
Pervious Paving
Bioretention Practices
Green Roofs
Natural Stream Buffers
Wetland Restoration
Naturalized Wet-bottom Detention Basins
Filtration Basins
Soil Infiltration Trenches
Sand Filters

Applicants can receive up to 75 percent cost-share on these practices. Urban critical areas include parts of Elkhart and Nappanee, along with Goshen, Ligonier, Kendallville, Syracuse, Millersburg, Albion, Rome City, and Milford.

Development in urban areas increases the volume of runoff that enters waterways, and the pollutants that are carried by that runoff. Installing these practices reduces the impact of urban development on our rivers, streams, lakes, and wetlands.

The ERA’s 319 grant funded a demonstration site at the Elkhart Environmental Center. This site has two rain gardens, a bioretention area, and a pervious concrete sidewalk. We hope this program will help ordinary people have a positive influence on water quality.

Check out the Elkhart Truth Rain Garden story giving ERA some good publicity.

Questions? Contact Eric Kurtz or call 574-533-3630 ext. 3.

Rain Barrel

For more information or to apply for the Urban Cost Share Program, please click on the links below:

Urban Cost-Share Brochure

ERA Urban Cost-Share Application

Ranking Form (This form shows how the committee evaluating applications will judge the applications, and is included for information only. It does not need to be included with the application.)