Parking Lot F
Parking Lot DAbout This Project
Metro Blooms Design+Build worked with the Riverside Plaza Tenant Association and Sherman Associates to address flooding and stormwater challenges at Riverside Plaza, a housing complex home to more than 4,000 residents in downtown Minneapolis. In 2019, our team redesigned a failing stormwater feature in one of the parking lots, converting it into a functioning rain garden planted with pollinator-friendly native plants. Two years later, we installed a system in another parking lot, which uses pretreatment structures and dual rain garden basins to collect runoff from the surrounding areas. Both projects help reduce pollution to the nearby Mississippi River while bringing nature to a site with previously very little green space.
Community involvement shaped the design and construction every step of the way. Residents participated in planting days, with outreach and materials translated into Somali and Oromo. By turning paved surfaces into functioning rain gardens, Riverside Plaza now not only manages stormwater more effectively but also offers residents meaningful opportunities to connect with nature in the heart of the city.
