Proposals requested for South Boston waterfront coastal resiliency planning

The City of Boston, in partnership with the Boston Planning & Development Agency (BPDA) and with funding from the Barr Foundation, released today a Request for Proposals to expand climate resiliency planning to the Fort Point Channel and the South Boston Waterfront. The goal of this work is to identify specific neighborhood solutions to coastal flooding from sea level rise and storms.

"The South Boston Waterfront is an opportunity for us to address the impacts of climate change head on," said Mayor Martin J. Walsh. "We've committed to making our neighborhoods more resilient, and this process will be another important step in that direction."

The proposed project will provide technical, design and engagement support in the development of climate preparedness policy and design strategies for the South Boston Waterfront and Fort Point Channel as part of the Climate Ready Boston initiative. Climate Ready Boston is coordinated with Imagine Boston 2030 to address the impacts of climate change while creating new economic opportunities and improving quality of life in neighborhoods across the City.

"These efforts will be guided by the principles, strategies, and initiatives proposed in last year's Climate Ready Boston report," said Chief of Environment, Energy, and Open Space Austin Blackmon. "We're eager to put words to action in preparing South Boston for the impacts of climate change."

As identified in the Climate Ready Boston report released last year, the probability and extent of flooding in the South Boston Waterfront, particularly near Fort Point Channel and to the north along Boston Harbor, will steadily increase over the course of the century as the sea level rises.

Earlier this year the City and BPDA began similar neighborhood-level resiliency planning in East Boston and Charlestown with the support of the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management and the Barr Foundation. As announced in the City's proposed capital budget, Boston is investing significantly to expand this planning to more of Boston's most climate vulnerable neighborhoods. These areas include East Boston-Jeffries Point, Charlestown near Charles River Dam, downtown waterfront near the Aquarium, and Dorchester Bay-Moakley Park.