Posted on February 13, 2023
In September of 2022, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), New York District, unveiled its latest vision of how to protect Rockaway and other nearby coastal communities, a $52 billion proposal to build 12 movable sea barriers, which would include Jamacia Bay and the Rockaway Inlet, to protect residents from future storm surge.
The original plan, which would have cost $119 billion, was a five-mile storm surge barrier built across the mouth of the Lower New York Bay, stretching from Sandy Hook, New Jersey to Breezy Point. It has been shelved in favor of this movable barrier plan, known as Alternative 3b.
The tentative plan includes extensive systems of seawalls and flood walls in the entire Rockaway peninsula, and one of the largest of the surge gates proposed by the Army Corps includes one across the entrance to Jamaica Bay, which is home to nature preserves and endangered salt marshes. Several environmental groups have expressed concerns about the impact of the gates on marine habitats.
However, the massive flooding that took place on Dec. 23, 2022, has exacerbated the community’s concerns about surge protection.
Regardless of where you stand on the issue, you now have a chance to submit your thoughts and concerns in two different ways.
The first is submitting comments by mail by March 7, 2023, to:
Ms. Cheryl Alkemeyer
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
New York District
Jacob K. Javits Federal Building, Room 17-420
c/o PSC Mail Center
26 Federal Plaza
New York, New York 10278
917-790-8723 or e-mail to NYNJHarbor.TribStudy@usace.army.mil
or
Mr. Bryce W. Wisemiller, Project Manager
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New York District
Jacob K. Javits Federal Building, Room 17-401
c/o PSC Mail Center
26 Federal Plaza
New York, New York 10278
917-790-8307
The other is to attend the public meeting in Rockaway on Tuesday, Feb. 21, from 2 p.m.- 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. at the Rockaway YMCA, 207 Beach 73rd St, Arverne.
If you have an opinion or insight and just want to make your concerns known, you now have the opportunity to let the USACE know what you’re thinking.
