These ponds, considered “green” and functioning by SPU, have been full now for ten days. The ground is saturated all the way to the Glacial Till (clay) below, and the water is not draining. In the deeper spots, 8 to 11 inches of water pools and sits. Two-year-old and four-year-old boys live in the house adjacent to this.
During yesterday’s rain, the cells overflowed, and the water began pouring over the berms: two cells looked like one.
The black asphalt plugs still restrain water from the street; even while overwhelmed, these ponds are not functioning as originally designed (even though they are marked as “green” by SPU).
Saturday night, teenagers came to hang around the ponds, and Sunday morning, footprints covered the top of the slope, compacting the absorbing soil that was already pressed down by driving rain. The design plans may not have taken these factors into account.
The Ballard Raingardengue 
The city can dump as much absorbant soil into these ditches as they want but as we that live here know, the water has no where to go,
hello city, its hardpan. Why dont they ask their own sewer dept that just dug down twelve feet on 31st to repair the drive way & sewer line that collapsed. They said it was hard pan all the way down.