Volunteers will begin building the first rain garden on city property this week.

Roger Hill Volunteer Center volunteers will dig from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday and planting will be from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.

The rain garden will be at 320 N.E. Industrial Lane in North Lawrence. Rain gardens capture rainwater from roofs, driveways and sidewalks and engage indigenous plants to filter and prevent pollutants from running into rivers and water supplies.

Maggie Bixler, an AmeriCorps member, said volunteers with backgrounds in environmental studies, urban planning and service learning will help with the building.

The public is invited to attend the garden’s construction.

“It will function as an easy option for residents to copy and help control stormwater,” said Kathy Richardson, a supervisor for the Lawrence Waste Reduction and Recycling Division.