One of the things I am looking to include when we move is a rain cistern. I haven't started looking yet, but after one program I watched, I really like the idea of having a 3200 gallon rain storage cistern that I could use to run micro-irrigation (the homeowner used trellising to turn the cistern into a nice focal point instead of an eyesore). For now I am content with having a 55 gal barrel, even if I do run it pretty empty during our drier times, but as my garden becomes more established, this takes longer to do and I mostly use this water for my patio plants or watering in new plants.

Hi garden designers. I am going to invite my Master Rain Gardener class to post in the Great Lakes Gardening forum here. Please come and help out newbie rain gardeners! I'd love your support and help from experienced gardeners. Sometimes the questions are general gardening, like how to remove sod, or more rain-garden-specific. Your comments are welcome! Here is a link to last year's class (part 1 of 5). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGbhLZPY4JA 

So they will survive in your full sun. :) That said - the plants you have chosen are all pretty big. Most are tall, and will take up more space than you are showing there. (Make your circles bigger for Ninebark, Potentilla, and Rose Mallow.) If you want simplicity, perhaps pare it down a bit. It looks to me like you have room for one Ninebark, maybe 3 Golden Potentilla, and at most 3 Rose Mallow. You might just choose one of these three tall species, to serve as a focal point. (If you really want tall, because you are blocking the view of something, that is ok. Just typically, people don't want something so tall in the front yard.) Also, when you choose your Aster, make sure to get a cultivar like "Woods Blue". I have the straight species, and it is huge/tall, and spreads. Not so great for a little front garden. You might make that short aster + sedge your simple border, and the tall species in the middle, "making a statement". Maybe just the Potentilla and the Rose Mallow? Then you would get all summer bloom, with a gorgeous Rose Mallow bloom event in the middle. I would do just one Rose Mallow, and 1 or 3 Potentilla. The rest of the border all Palm Sedge and Woods Blue Aster. That would be simple, without too many species, like you said.

The plant list is similar to what you have described Nandina! Chionanthus is definitely on the planting list, next to the bench. Did not know it has both male and female plants. Have already planted several viburnums down below--Sargent's viburnum. And dwarf fothergilla (witch hazel's cousin) in the front, and some red twig dogwoods but I think I will transplant them, I don't like them in this setting. The larger shrubs are mostly our witch hazel collection, so Hamamelis species and varieties. We surveyed a local native high quality natural area to come up with some ideas on plants that would naturally be growing in this situation. One we are going to try along with the viburnums is pagoda dogwood, but keeping deer off of it will be a challenge. We found native currants in our reference plot but staying away from them due to lots of white pines nearby. Hence the maple-leaved viburnum choices. Debating on Illex verticullata because they don't do well with the excessive deer browsing problems around here. Am trying to solve that problem as well! I am planning on perhaps wild blueberries but so far haven't found any low growing ones and I have enough high stuff for the back. They would replace the redtwig dogwoods. The ones I got are cute, with small leaves close to the stem, so very ornamental but they look too contrived in this natural setting. I have a more formal place for them. As for the salt, YES, there are alternatives, but to get the grounds crew to coordinate and think out of the box may take some doing. I have had to re-do the plant list a couple of times. It's sometimes like searching for the needle in the haystack--native, deer resistant, salt tolerant, shade tolerant . . . I mean c'mon!! :) Our soil is limestone base so somewhat forgiving on salt. I have a huge compost stash for ammending and that helps. Also helps to counteract juglone, which thankfully is not really a problem in that area with the one walnut tree. Anyway, I will post the plant list in a bit for anyone interested. Lots of wildflowers, some ferns and grasses, not all for the rock garden, some for the hill down below. Am focusing on shrubs and trees first though. So far I've shown the two schemes/layouts to a lot of folks for feedback, some like the busier one, some like the more formal one. I'll probably do a hybrid. My MS Paint skills are deteriorating so not sure how many more versions I will play with. Eventually I will map the whole thing. Actually doing a map with grid paper next week with my class. Would love to find a site where you could download standard graphics for trees and shrubs and forbs. That would save me having to draw or try and find clip art for them.