I received this from one of our neighbors:
“I spoke to Karen York [SPU] today along with a van full of City people as they pulled up in front of my house….They were inspecting the area. I asked what they thought of the progress. They all thought it looked fantastic. I told them that I am super disappointed and this whole thing is a nightmare. I know they did not appreciate my response, but I was just being honest.”
Fantastic? Didn’t appreciate a resident’s response? Disrespectful at best; spiteful at worst.
I found an interesting article in West Seattle Herald from July 31st, 2009, during the planning phase for the Raingardens (http://www.westseattleherald.com/2009/07/30/news/city-starts-tests-install-natural-drainage-ballard). From the article:
“Another concern heard from residents was the maintenance, puddling and parking of the bio-soil facilities.
“[Karen York of Seattle Public Utilities] explained that the designers are taking these concerns into consideration and will not eliminate parking on an entire street. She said the city is looking for alternatives and are evaluating the feasibility of using alleys and will work with the community before they make any final decisions.”
The concern was right on. Working with the community? Not so much.
The Ballard Raingardengue 
Interesting article, I noticed that this is a picture of the rain garden in my neighborhood park in Ballard also. Installing these around parks is a fantastic plan. And please take note – if the raingradens on this street looked like the one in the picture by the park, with river rock, no standing water, and lots of lush landscaping, I don’t think these neighbors would be complaining! Also please look at the picture, and notice that there are not a bunch of signs all over it making it look like a commercial zone.