How to Get the Residential Stormwater Management Incentive Program

What you get

The City of Elmhurst reimburses homeowners who voluntarily add stormwater storage on their own property, paying $8.00 per cubic foot of rain garden storage up to 400 cubic feet and $8.80 per cubic foot above that, capped at $5,000. Rain gardens are built to a 6 inch inundation depth and are a named practice in the Incentive Payment Table in Elmhurst Municipal Code Sec. 14.09; permeable pavers, dry wells, underground storage and rainwater harvesting are separately rated alternatives. Two things commonly misread: this is a full reimbursement rather than a 50/50 match, paid at the table rate or your actual project cost, whichever is lower, and the rate is the same $8.00 and $8.80 whether you do the work yourself or hire a contractor. It is a one-time only reimbursement per property. A rain garden installed to satisfy the stormwater requirements of another permit does not qualify, and a rain garden that receives this reimbursement cannot later be used to meet a future permit requirement. Permits, the Stormwater Management 1 and 2 inspections and a final inspection are all required, and the City funds the program annually on a first-come basis until that year allocation is exhausted (Elmhurst Municipal Code Sec. 14.09; last verified August 2026).

• Residential: $8.00 per cubic foot of rain garden storage up to 400 cu ft, $8.80 per cubic foot above that, up to $5,000

Are you eligible?

• Be a City of Elmhurst customer
• Property located in: Elmhurst
• Elmhurst residential property owner
• Obtain applicable permits and hire your own contractor
• Stormwater Management 1 and 2 inspections plus a final inspection must be completed
• Paid invoices and a Reimbursement Request form with system type, size and dimensions
• One-time only reimbursement per property
• Systems required as an element of another permit are not eligible
• A system that receives reimbursement cannot be used to meet a future permit requirement