Back in June of 2013, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) launched the Rebuild by Design Competition to spur new ideas and collaborations for improving coastal area resiliency in the Hurricane Sandy-affected region.
Hunts Point Lifelines was one of the six winning proposals. It’s a resilience plan for Hunts Point that was developed by a team of multi-disciplinary professionals who worked closely with local stakeholders over many months.
A total of $45 million of HUD Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) was awarded to advance winning concepts from the Rebuild by Design proposal, and to implement a resilience pilot project.
The New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), in collaboration with the Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency (ORR), selected HDR, Inc. to conduct two feasibility studies for energy resiliency and flood risk reduction, as well as a conceptual design for a resilient energy pilot project.
The City is engaging residents, business owners, community organizations, and other local stakeholders to identify resiliency priorities and recommendations that build upon the ideas presented in the Hunts Point Lifelines proposal, and other ongoing initiatives in Hunts Point. The City hired the Interaction Institute for Social Change to facilitate this engagement process.
Recent activity included a walking tour and public outreach meeting on June 20, 2017 (pictured at top). The beautiful summer weather was the perfect setting for the pre-meeting walking tour at Hunts Point Riverside Park, which in turn helped shape a great conversation about flood risk reduction project approaches.
In an April 14, 2017 letter soliciting public comments on the latest resilience plan, Jainey Bavishi, Director of the Mayor’s Office of Recovery and Resiliency, said:
“It has been over four years since Hurricane Sandy devastated our City taking the lives of 44 New Yorkers and causing over $19 billion in economic damages. The City of New York launched an unparalleled effort not only to rebuild those neighborhoods hardest hit, but also to improve the City’s infrastructure to help mitigate the risk from future extreme weather events.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, the City released A Stronger, More Resilient New York, which identified Hunts Point as a priority area given its vulnerability to threats from climate change, its residential population, and the critical importance of the Hunts Point food markets to the region’s food supply. This Substantial Action Plan Amendment outlines the City’s plan, now part of OneNYC, to implement a resilient energy project in Hunts Point to protect the community from increasing risks associated with flooding and other climate threats.
In June 2014, HUD awarded New York City $20 million through its Rebuild by Design (RBD) competition for the Hunts Point Lifelines conceptual proposal for continued study, planning and community engagement, as well as, for the design and construction of a pilot project. RBD seeks to promote innovative design in resilience projects and incorporate community engagement in the rebuilding process. To provide financial support, the City committed an additional $25 million in federal Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) funds.
Hunts Point Landing, part of the
South Bronx Greenway
In 2015, the City initiated a robust community engagement process with local residents and stakeholders to obtain input as to neighborhood RBD priorities. Participants included over 40 representatives from community-based organizations, the food manufacturing and distribution
industry, business leaders, and local government representatives. Additionally, several public meetings were held to engage the public at-large. This engagement helped to develop the Hunts Point Resiliency project, which aims to implement a resilient energy pilot project and analyze long-term protections from storm surge and sea level rise.
This Substantial Action Plan Amendment identifies the preferred energy resiliency pilot project that will be implemented with HUD CDBG-DR funds. The Hunts Point Resiliency project will provide reliable and resilient energy to critical local and citywide facilities in the Hunts Point peninsula during emergency events such as flooding and power outages. Hurricane Sandy reminded us of the extent of our vulnerability to climate change.
The Hunts Point Resiliency project, now a $45 million innovative effort, sets forth a framework for developing community-led resiliency projects in the future. Through public engagement, innovative planning and engineering, the City will ensure that this vital neighborhood is prepared. For extreme weather and other natural disasters. As described in this Substantial Action Plan Amendment, the City is making steady progress towards a stronger, more resilient New York.”
See the most recent plan (PDF).