Coastal infrastructureMiami Beach to raise West Avenue in the face of sea-level rise

City planners in Miami Beach will begin the first phase of a two-part project to raise West Avenue between 1.5 to two feet during the next few years in an effort to prepare the area in the face of sea-level rise. The Miami Herald reports that the project will coincide with stormwater drainage and sewer improvements which include installing more pumps to prevent flooding from rain and high tides.

The West Avenue Neighborhood Association met with residents and business owners last Wednesday to discuss details, including how the project will affect traffic patterns and commerce. Public Works director Eric Carpenter told attendees that he prefers to raise the street level and install underground infrastructure at the same time. “It doesn’t really make any sense to disturb those segments of the street twice,” he said. “We’re moving forward with the stormwater improvements. What we’re trying to do now is get a consensus from the community that we want to move forward with everything else on that street so that we don’t have to come back later and tear it up again.”

A higher street level would also call for improved transitions from road to sidewalk, which, depending on the property, could include a higher sidewalk or steps down to the sidewalk. City engineer Bruce Mowry announced that Bergeron Land Development, the contractor for the first phase which will take place from February to August, said that portion of the project will cost about $15 million. He stressed that Miami Beach is “ground zero” for the effects of sea-level rise. “I’m not going to stop sea-level rise,” he said. “But we are here to try and mitigate.”

Mowry has been urging city leaders and businesses to invest in efforts to combat the effects of climate change. “Miami Beach will never not exist,” Mowry told National Geographic “But it will exist in a different way. We may have floating residential areas. We could have elevated roads built up on pilings. We could convert a transportation corridor to water. People ask me, ‘Bruce, can this be done?’ I say, ‘It can be done, but can you afford it?’” On plans to raise the sidewalk and street of nearby Purdy Avenue by two feet to prevent future flooding, Mowry warns that two feet will not solve the problem, but with funding and community support still lacking, city officials decided to start small. “Two feet buys the life of this building,” Mowry said referring to a Purdy Avenue building that flooded in 2013. “You can’t come in and make radical changes.”

For many residents of West Avenue who had reservations about the proposal to raise the street level, last week’s meeting gave them confidence. “It’ll be OK,” said Gayle Durham, who is a member of the neighborhood association board. “I feel better after this meeting,” she said at the end. “I trust them more.”