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April 16, 2015 by Sarah Crean

SPECIAL REPORT: Assessing Resilience Planning: Is the City Preparing Smartly for the Rising Risks of Climate Change?

Brooklyn's Red Hook,  post-Sandy . Source: NOAA

Brooklyn’s Red Hook, post-Sandy . Source: NOAA

At one of many such meetings now taking place throughout the city’s waterfront, residents of Red Hook, Brooklyn, gathered recently at a local community center to hear about the dramatic expansion of federal flood zones in their area and what the new designation would cost them.

As in other coastal neighborhoods, Red Hook struggles with a variety of flooding-related issues. Area homes, businesses and public housing developments suffered heavy damage from a five-foot storm surge during Superstorm Sandy. Red Hook also has long-term stormwater drainage problems.

So as the March 31 meeting night wore on, and residents sat closely together staring grimly at maps of their neighborhood, their fatigue and frustration was palpable.

One described still not being back in his home more than two years after major damage during Sandy. Another, in exasperation, asked city officials and their Congresswoman Nydia Velazquez, who presided over the meeting, “What are you going to do? We are having meeting after meeting [about recovery and resiliency] and the neighborhood is still flooding.”

Red Hook is not alone. Similar issues and worries are being played out in waterfront communities throughout New York, from the Lower East Side to the Rockaways.

Problems like localized flooding will become all the more urgent as climate change progresses. But the threat to each neighborhood is different, depending on where it is located relative to the city’s 500-plus miles of coastline, and factors like socio-economic conditions, building stock, and critical infrastructure.

City officials are far from indifferent. Its strategy, in a nutshell, is to gradually strengthen the coastline, upgrade building stock and protect critical infrastructure.

Next week on Earth Day, April 22, the city plans to release a major progress report, the first in four years, on its multi-pronged sustainability framework, known as PlaNYC. As in the past, the report is expected to include discussion of climate resiliency, that is, the city’s ongoing and developing preparations to manage for the effects of climate change.

The PlaNYC update is the result of “an extensive engagement process,” city spokeswoman Amy Spitalnick recently told Capital New York, including meetings in every community board district, a survey available in seven languages, and an “expanded advisory board.”

In anticipation of the city’s report, AdaptNY and news partners Gotham Gazette and the NY Environment Report raised a series of key questions about resiliency planning with a group of planners, engineers, architects, elected officials, and other experts.

  • What is the pace of preparations? And are there sufficient financial resources?
  • Is the city using the best data possible?
  • What’s the impact of expanding flood zones? And is retreat an option?
  • Can we improve the decision-making process? Expand public engagement?
  • What are the institutional obstacles?
  • What are the social implications of resiliency planning?

The overarching question: can the process of becoming resilient make New York, in the end, a better city – more livable, environmentally sustainable and socially cohesive?

Among other key takeaways, we found: Continue reading →

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, Alex Washburn, Alliance for a Just Rebuilding, Army Corps, barriers, Big U, Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg, blue belts, Bronx, Brooklyn, charter review, City Council, climate change, Coney Island, Daniel Zarrilli, disaster preparedness, Donovan Richards, Earth Institute, engagement, environmental justice, FEMA, flood barriers, flooding, Funding, Gotham Gazette, HUD, Hunts Point, hurricanes, Lower East Side, Manhattan, Mark Treyger, Mike Menser, Municipal Arts Society, NPCC, NYCHA, Nydia Velazquez, One City, participatory budgeting, PlaNYC, Red Hook, resilience, Rockaways, Sandy, sea walls, sea-level rise, sirr, social resiliency, Staten Island, Steve Cohen, storm surge, Vincent Ignizio, waterfront ·

Archives

April 16, 2015 by Sarah Crean

RESILIENCY SPOTLIGHT: Staten Island, Awaiting Next Storm, Balances Long-Term Planning, Short-Term Needs

Staten Island after Sandy, Nov. 9, 2012 . Source: Walter Jennings via FEMA

Staten Island after Sandy, Nov. 9, 2012 . Source: Walter Jennings via FEMA

Just over half of the deaths caused by Superstorm Sandy, 22 to be exact, occurred on Staten Island’s East and South shores, as the storm’s waves battered homes and swept some off their foundations.

Now the island is in a race against time to prepare for the next major coastal storm. Multi-million dollar resiliency projects are coming to Staten Island, from a sea wall on its East Shore to the expansion of innovative “natural drainage corridors.”

The projects are on target, say local officials, but the pace needs to be faster.

The island’s East Shore is directly exposed to the New York Bight, a coastline formation that can channel powerful storm waves and surges into areas within New York Harbor.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is planning to construct a “mega” sea wall that will protect over half of the East Shore, from the Verrazano Bridge to Oakwood, said Staten Island Borough President James Oddo in a phone interview.

The Army Corps will be releasing a draft feasibility study on the proposed wall to the public next month.

Oddo estimated that the wall would be completed by 2020 or 2021. The city and state are also assisting with its construction, he said.

“This is a different timetable than [the initial plans] we talked about,” added the borough president. “Help has been all too slow in coming…There will be several hurricane seasons.”

What happens between now and 2020 or 2021?

Continue reading →

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, Army Corps, Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg, blue belts, Build It Back, climate change, CUNY J School, disaster preparedness, elevation, flood barriers, flooding, hurricanes, James Oddo, resilience, Sandy, sea-level rise, Staten Island, storm surge, Vincent Ignizio ·

Archives

October 24, 2014 by by Sarah Crean, with reporting by students of CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

SPECIAL REPORT:
At-Risk Residents Worry Over Climate Safety;
City Leaders Eye Resiliency and Outreach

Do New Yorkers believe, two years after Superstorm Sandy decimated the area’s coastline, that they’re safer from future storms and devastating floods?

The answer – according to 70 residents from around the city who spoke with our reporters and filled out our online survey – seems to be a resounding “no.”

City officials we interviewed argue that preparations are underway to protect New York from future climate risk. Yet some local City Council members confirm that the public sentiment we gathered is not misguided, acknowledging that more needs to be done to let New Yorkers know about resiliency efforts.

These were the findings of a team of nearly three dozen journalists conducting an investigation that ran several weeks and focused on two of the city’s worst storm-battered communities – Brooklyn’s Red Hook and Manhattan’s Lower East Side. The collaborative reporting project was conducted by AdaptNY, with partners Gotham Gazette, a public watchdog climate news site; the independent NY Environment Report, and the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism.

The “Are You Climate Safe?” project sent our reporters into the field earlier in October. There, we interviewed residents and business owners, and subsequently surveyed online dozens of others from these two high-risk neighborhoods and other parts of the city and metro area (see live coverage from Lower East Side and from Red Hook, plus a live reporting wrapup).

The overwhelming majority of those we contacted told us they thought they were no safer. Just a handful said they believed they were better off.

A significant number also said they were simply unsure what measures, if any, were being taken to protect their communities. That despite the fact the city appears to be working steadily through a massive and costly set of resiliency initiatives, even as it struggles to make progress in responding to disappointment over the slowness of its “Build It Back” housing recovery program.

The degree of public disengagement with city planning work on climate resiliency we uncovered echoes our previous investigative findings of a striking disconnect in communication between City Hall and some of the communities most affected by Sandy.

“I have not seen any evidence of preparation against climate risk in my community, except for the new NYC flood risk zones map,” said one retired Red Hook resident. “I don’t believe we are truly informed on what has been done,” said another.

The collaborative also spoke with city leaders, including City Council Members and high-ranking members of the de Blasio administration.

Other key findings from the investigation were:

  • Many of the city’s large-scale climate resiliency projects, still in the planning phase, are essentially invisible to residents we reached.
  • As a result, some prominent local officials argue that there needs to be a “clear, concise, understandable” version of the city’s resiliency plan, especially in these most vulnerable areas.
  • But planning is clearly underway, such as with large-scale flood protection projects in Red Hook and the Lower East Side, both hard hit by Sandy-related flooding.
  • Both communities are also about to see portions of $1.8 billion in FEMA funds for the permanent replacement of temporary boilers, installed after Sandy damage in the public housing complexes that many of their residents call home.
  • Yet many residents, uncertain about broader resiliency measures being put into place by city officials, told us they are preparing personally for another catastrophic weather event. Some, especially in Red Hook, see themselves as more reliant on the efforts of fellow citizens in community groups and local community boards for protection from future climate extremes.

Resiliency Gap Between Residents, City

Continue reading →

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, AdaptNY, Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg, Brooklyn, City Council, climate change, Coney Island, CUNY J School, disaster preparedness, Donovan Richards, flooding, Gotham Gazette, HUD, hurricanes, infrastructure, Manhattan, Mark Treyger, NYCHA, rebuilding, recovery, resilience, Sandy, sea walls, sea-level rise, storm surge, waterfront ·

Archives

October 4, 2014 by by David Gershgorn, Eric Levitz, Derek Scancarelli and Marguerite Ward

Are New York’s High-Risk Neighborhoods Climate Safe?

Lower East Side, Red Hook residents unsure whether their communities are prepared for future extreme weather

TAKE OUR CLIMATE SAFETY SURVEY

Ray Andujar, of Economy Candy on the Lower East Side: “How can you feel safer after something like that?” Photo by Erica Davies

Ray Andujar, of Economy Candy on the Lower East Side: “How can you feel safer after something like that?” Photo by Erica Davies

More than a dozen AdaptNY reporters hit the ground on the Lower East Side of Manhattan and in Brooklyn’s Red Hook on Thursday, Oct. 2 to kick off a special climate change crowdsourcing project. The effort will explore whether the most vulnerable New Yorkers believe themselves safe from the coming impacts of extreme weather.

The reporters, part of a 30-plus-member news team organized in partnership with the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, spent several hours combing the communities for insights from residents, asking “Two years after Sandy, do you think you’re safer?”

Red Hook and the Lower East Side (LES) were targeted because they were among the worst hit by Sandy in 2012 and remain among the most at risk for future climate-related damage from extreme weather and sea-level rise.

WATCH OUR COVERAGE – Lower East Side | Red Hook

Continue reading →

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, AdaptNY, Brooklyn, climate change, CUNY J School, disaster preparedness, Gotham Gazette, Lower East Side, Manhattan, Red Hook ·

Archives

October 2, 2014 by Jessica Bal, Andrew Caringi, Reed Dunlea, Emrys Eller, Sophie Gauthier, Lillian Knoepp, Monica Melton, Carlotta Mohamed, Elise Murrell, Cari Party, Catherine Roberts, Maria Sanchez Diez, Derek Scancarelli, Bianca Silva, John Spina, Marguerite Ward - CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

Live Coverage from Red Hook, Brooklyn: Are You Climate Safe?

Live Blog Red Hook, Are You Climate Safe?
 

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, AdaptNY, Brooklyn, climate change, CUNY J School, disaster preparedness, flooding, Gotham Gazette, hurricanes, resilience, Sandy, sea-level rise, storm surge, waterfront ·

Archives

October 2, 2014 by Chauncey Alcorn, Pilar Desha, Rahim Chagani, Jack D’isidoro, Erica Davies, William Engel, Allison Fox, David Gershgorn, Eric Levitz, Kathryn Long, Ayana Mason, Andrew Menezes, Cole Rosengren, Karen Shakerdge, Gabriela Alonso - CUNY Graduate School of Journalism

Live Coverage from Manhattan’s Lower East Side: Are You Climate Safe?

Live Blog Live Event: Are You Climate Safe? Lower East Side
 

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, AdaptNY, Brooklyn, climate change, disaster preparedness, flooding, Gotham Gazette, hurricanes, Red Hook, resilience, Sandy, sea-level rise ·

Archives

October 1, 2014 by A. Adam Glenn

Is New York More Climate Safe?

High-Risk Neighborhoods of Red Hook, Lower East Side Are Focus of Live Coverage, Climate Crowdsourcing

Streets and buildings flooded, power out, trains down, lives disrupted and taken. No, we’re not talking about the effects of Superstorm Sandy two years ago. We’re talking about New York’s future, with the kind of extreme weather experts warn could hit the city in the years ahead.

Given the forecasts and the lessons of Sandy’s massive impact, do residents in some of the most climate-vulnerable New York neighborhoods think they’re any safer than when Sandy hit? And what is the city doing to help make them safer?

To find out, we and a group of partners are launching a multi-faceted special project this week.

First, on Thursday morning, Oct. 2, we plan to send teams of journalists to report in real time from two of New York’s highest-risk neighborhoods – Red Hook in Brooklyn and the Lower East Side of Manhattan. Both communities were slammed during Sandy and are now bracing for more.

At the same time, we plan to launch a crowdsourcing initiative that will be asking all of you the same question: Do you believe you’re safer?

Continue reading →

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS ·

Archives

March 25, 2014 by A. Adam Glenn

AdaptNY Workshop Participants Brainstorm Solutions for Climate Risk

Participants at an AdaptNY workshop brainstormed how they might help end users understand climate adaptation. - Photo by Eddie Vega

Participants at an AdaptNY workshop brainstormed how they might help end users understand climate adaptation. – Photo by Eddie Vega

Can New York be made more resilient to the risks of climate change with pipe cleaners, markers and sticky notes? That’s what a diverse group of several dozen journalists, climate specialists, community organizers and product design experts set out to discover at a creative brainstorming workshop organized by AdaptNY.

Using the principles of human-centered design – and some of those imagination-sparking tools – participants worked in teams throughout the day-long gathering to answer a central question: How might we inspire our community to get more involved in climate resilience solutions?

The workshop featured a power panel of top-flight climate experts from the worlds of media, science, government and environmental advocacy, addressing the problems of adapting to the impacts of climate change and extreme weather. Then throughout the day, usability experts and coaches guided participants through a process of understanding what their users need, brainstorming solutions, prototyping projects and then sharing them for feedback from other workshop attendees.

Learn how the teams answered the adaptation challenge, and the unique process by which they developed those ideas, in our special report on the workshop.

  • Follow our live coverage of the day, with live blogging, images and video
  • Hear from climate experts on the coming risks and need for adaptation. View videos and read a transcript.
  • Watch an exclusive interview with the New York City councilman who chairs a new resilience committee
  • Learn more about the design thinking process and human-centered design
  • Get summaries of a half-dozen solutions to the adaptation problem, with videos and images of team efforts.
  • UPDATE: See a video report on the workshop, and an interview of AdaptNY Editor Adam Glenn on the public television news magazine “MetroFocus” on WNET

AdaptNY partnered with the Online News Association and the Center for Community and Ethnic Media at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism to offer the all-day workshop Feb. 22.

Posted in Resilience, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, AdaptNY, City Council, climate change, CUNY J School, Mark Treyger, resilience, Sandy, Workshop ·

Archives

October 29, 2013 by A. Adam Glenn

SPECIAL REPORT RECAP: City Hall, Community Boards Confront Disconnect on Climate Resilience

Over the last week, in a special multi-part investigation from a team of reporters at AdaptNY and our news partner Gotham Gazette, we revealed on a striking disconnect in communication between New York’s City Hall and some of the communities most affected by Sandy, as they try to address the urgent task of adapting New York to climate change.

In-depth reporting found fully half of the community boards we spoke to that represent those hardest-hit areas had serious concerns about their communications with the city.

But to its credit, City Hall responded in the wake of the criticism about community involvement in its climate change planning process by deciding to reconvene two community advisory task forces on the climate resilience issue and pledging “broad-based outreach” to some of the city’s hardest-hit neighborhoods as part of a Department of City Planning study.

Take a look at our in-depth, two-month-long investigative report below:

SPECIAL REPORT: Are The City’s Most Storm-Vulnerable Communities Being Heard?

  • Community Boards — Voices Of Neighborhoods Ignored?
  • MAP: NYC Flood Zones Heading Inland

SPECIAL REPORT, PT 2: Snapshots from NYC Communities on Climate Frontlines

  • MAP: Are Communities Hardest Hit By Sandy Being Heard by City Hall?

SPECIAL REPORT, PT 3: City Promises ‘Broad-Based Outreach’ To Communities To Prepare For Future Storms

 

 

Posted in Extreme Weather, Rebuilding, Resilience, Sandy's Lessons, SPECIAL REPORTS ·

Archives

October 28, 2013 by by Sarah Crean, Gotham Gazette

SPECIAL REPORT, PT 3: City Promises ‘Broad-Based Outreach’ To Communities To Prepare For Future Storms

This story was written by Sarah Crean, with reporting by Carla Astudillo, Emily Keller, Amy Kraft and Linda Thrasybule, research by Jessica Scanlon, Roxanne Scott and EJ Stewart and mapping by Cesar Bustamante and Carla Astudillo. It is part three of a series. Part one was published on Monday. Part two on Wednesday.

New York City has decided to reconvene two community advisory task forces that weighed in on Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s multi-billion dollar plan to protect the city from future extreme weather and the effects of climate change in the wake of Superstorm Sandy, the city’s resiliency director told the AdaptNY and news partner Gotham Gazette in an exclusive interview. The task forces will resume meeting this fall.

Daniel Zarrilli, the city’s director of resiliency, also said yesterday that there would be “broad-based outreach” to some of the city’s hardest-hit neighborhoods as part of a Department of City Planning study that will examine “how we can ultimately build more resilient communities.” The study will examine issues such as the city’s building codes and the new national flood insurance maps.

The announcements came Oct. 24 with the city fielding criticism about community involvement in its climate change planning process, as detailed in a multi-part investigative report by AdaptNY and Gotham Gazette published earlier that week.

Continue reading →

Posted in Extreme Weather, Rebuilding, Resilience, Sandy's Lessons, SPECIAL REPORTS · Tagged Adaptation, beaches, Bill de Blasio, Bloomberg, Brooklyn, climate change, disaster preparedness, flood barriers, flooding, Gotham Gazette, hurricanes, Joe Lhota, Manhattan, Queens, rebuilding, report, resilience, Sandy, Staten Island, waterfront, zoning ·
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