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South Bend Redevelopment Commission <br /> Regular Meeting—October 11, 2011 <br /> 6. NEW BUSINESS (CONT.) <br /> B. Airport Economic Development Area <br /> (1) continued... <br /> it in a retention basin. We have designed an <br /> ecosystem, a sustainable system, partly in <br /> recognition that this is not a greenfield site. It <br /> is a Brownfield site. It wouldn't be a <br /> problem for industrial development, but we <br /> don't want to do things to change the <br /> pathway of low level groundwater <br /> contamination and maybe steer it toward the <br /> river. <br /> Mr. Gilot thinks the approach of harvesting <br /> rainwater into a storm water system of <br /> channels, using some plants that are water <br /> loving, takes advantage of our unique <br /> climate. In South Bend we get 35 inches of <br /> rain each year and 35 inches of evaporation. <br /> The trouble is that it doesn't come along <br /> uniformly. We can have several inches of <br /> rain to store and then have drought periods <br /> where it would be really expensive to meet <br /> all the needs for potable water on a 90-acre <br /> site. We think with appropriate design <br /> sensitivities, this ecosystem design doesn't <br /> have to cost a premium. This is something <br /> that can be done at a cost comparable to the <br /> conventional approach. Staff believes this is <br /> good, forward thinking planning. <br /> Mr. Gilot mentioned some other public <br /> works projects where South Bend has already <br /> been a leader, along with Notre Dame, or <br /> working with Purdue, where we have done <br /> some things that have not been done <br /> anywhere else in the world, such as CSO net. <br /> We invested $6 million in that technology to <br /> fully implement it, to make all the smart <br /> 13 <br />