Sherwood Episcopal Church Awarded $60K Grant for Storm Water Management Project

Sherwood Episcopal Church
Posted Aug 3, 2022

York Road drivers face hazardous conditions from storm water runoff.

Sherwood Episcopal Church in Cockeysville, Maryland recently received a $60,000 grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust Watershed Assistance Grant Program (WAG-P). The grant will be used to launch Sherwood’s Clean Water Project, an initiative designed to combat the effects of storm water runoff flowing down Sherwood Hill through the church’s campus, causing extensive erosion on the property, hazardous conditions for motorists on York Road, and flooded basements in businesses along the York Road corridor.

The Clean Water Project is a joint effort between church members serving on Sherwood’s Campus Imperative Team, neighbors, and consultants. After many hours of research and discussion on how to best utilize Sherwood’s property to benefit the Cockeysville community, the Campus Imperative Team’s direction came into focus and the Clean Water Project was launched.

Storm water streams into the church parking lot.

“God created this gorgeous natural setting for us on Sherwood Hill and it’s our responsibility to protect it,” said the Reverend Nancy H. Hennessey, rector of Sherwood Episcopal Church.  “As a people of faith and within our Episcopal tradition, it’s important that we care for our community and environment. We can help do this by filtering of the water that runs through our campus so that it empties into the Loch Raven Reservoir clean.”

Four objectives will be accomplished with this funding: management and treatment of storm water via a 13.3-acre drainage area, protection of existing infrastructure from storm events, creation of a habitat for native flora and fauna with pathways for the public, and establishment of projects to educate the community and other faith-based organizations about the benefits of natural solutions to storm water issues.

Campus Imperative Team Leader Ralph Wismer said, “The solution we will utilize is a Step Pool Stormwater Conveyance System [SPSC] that will take surface storm flow and convert it to shallow groundwater flow through a series of attenuation ponds and sand seepage filters.”

Annapolis-based environmental restoration firm and inventor of the SPSC Keith Underwood & Associates will provide Sherwood with design-and-build services to complete the project. Underwood & Associates has more than three decades of experience in restoring and reintegrating watershed ecosystems and they are directly tied to Chesapeake Bay clean-up efforts.

The Clean Water Project is slated to begin in the fall of 2022 with the demolition of Sherwood’s parish office, a 50+ year-old modular structure in the path of the SPSC. Construction of the SPSC will start in 2023.

About Sherwood Episcopal Church

Founded in 1826, Sherwood Episcopal Church is a small but mighty parish and a Baltimore County landmark. It is home to one of the few green spaces along York Road from Hunt Valley to Baltimore City. Sherwood’s mission is: “God commands us to enthusiastically cast open our doors to embrace all, impacting lives through bold service, no exceptions.” For more information, contact parish administrator Carey Mednick at 410-666-2180 or sherwoodparish@gmail.com. Visit their website at sherwoodcockeysville.org.