The purpose of a rain garden is to reduce the amount of stormwater that runs off of a property. The design of the water garden allows water to fill the area during a storm and slowly filter into the ground rather than flow into a storm drain. Rain gardens are very important, especially in cities and suburbs. When you have large amounts of stormwater runoff from a developed area there is an increase in flooding events, more pollutants are carried from streets, parking lots and even lawns into local streams and lakes; and these problems may lead to costly municipal improvements in stormwater treatment structures. Rain gardens are also a very attractive piece of landscaping to enhance the beauty of a property.

On Thursday, August 26, 2010, Cargill presented the Illinois River Watershed Partnership a check for $8,000. A portion of this money will pay for the materials used to build the rain garden on the Public Works property. The Illinois River Watershed Partnership has also announced that they will use a portion of the money to pay for materials to construct two rain gardens at area schools, one at Shaw Elementary and one at TG Smith Elementary.