In an effort to avoid another war after the Lewis Wharf Hotel debacle, nine North End / Waterfront condominium boards reached out to city officials in a joint letter (pdf) to address the remaining open development parcels in the neighborhood. Specifically, the letter identified areas of development concern at Commercial Wharf, Lewis Wharf, Sargent’s Wharf, and vacant lots Read More…
So, what happened to cause so much flooding during last week’s winter Nor’easter snow storm? Unlike the near miss of Hurricane Sandy where Boston dodged a (big) bullet, the so called “bomb cyclone” of January 2018 brought a storm surge that hit just at the worst time, an astronomical high tide. With already over 12 Read More…
Record flooding was seen Thursday afternoon in the North End and the downtown Boston waterfront as a 3 foot storm surge came in with a 12 foot high tide on the harbor. Flood waters reached the Rose Kennedy Greenway, a first in Boston, and the highest levels since the Blizzard of ’78. The Aquarium T Read More…
“King Tide,” the recurring high tides coincident with supermoons once again brought flooding on Sunday to waterfront paths behind the tennis courts, Langone Park and the Eliot School (under construction) on Commercial Street. Janine Coppola captures the sea level rise of Boston Harbor in the above photos. Long Wharf is another low point that regularly Read More…
Boston’s Chief of Environment, Open Space, and Energy, Austin Blackmon, spoke about the latest Climate Ready Boston report at this week’s North End / Waterfront Neighborhood Council (NEWNC). As summarized in this previous post, the new assessment highlights the city’s vulnerability to rising sea levels. The comprehensive report (pdf) issued by the Climate Ready Boston initiative details how the rising tides Read More…
As revelers made their 2017 New Year’s polar plunge in Boston’s waters, a new report issued just before the holidays made yet another sobering assessment of the city’s vulnerability to rising sea levels. The comprehensive report (pdf) issued by the Climate Ready Boston initiative details how the rising tides will soon start to engulf city neighborhoods in the coming decades. A Read More…
King Tides are visiting Boston’s waterfront this week with the highest sea levels seen this year. These photos are from Monday, October 17th around Long Wharf with many residents and visitors drawn to the rising seas. King Tide is roughly two feet higher than normal high tide (and lower than low tide) caused by the alignment of Read More…
Boston City Councilor LaMattina and Council President Michelle Wu are attending a conference this week in the Netherlands and Denmark sponsored by the Boston Green Ribbon Commission. The GRC is to bring together public, philanthropic and business leaders in Boston to learn about cutting edge European practices for achieving carbon neutrality, resiliency and long-term climate preparedness. Read More…
A sobering new report predicts continued increases in Boston’s sea levels, extreme precipitation and higher temperatures. Climate Ready Boston is an initiative led by the City of Boston in partnership with the Green Ribbon Commission to develop resilient solutions to prepare our city for climate change. The group released worrying climate projections for what Boston Read More…
Video: Lauren Zingarelli from the Boston Environment Department discussed the new FEMA Flood Maps for the North End at the December 14, 2015 NEWNC meeting. Changes to the Flood Insurance Rate Maps for the City of Boston go into effect on March 16, 2016. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has been revising flood maps to reflect Read More…
Boston’s waterfront saw its highest tide of the year last week, known as “King Tide.” The relative position of the sun and moon created a tide nearly 2 1/2 feet higher than average. Using estimates of recent climate change research, it also showed how the cityscape will look as the average Boston Harbor height around Read More…
After reviewing dozens of Boston Living With Water proposals, a jury has selected nine finalists that will move on to compete for a $20,000 grand prize. The North End’s Prince Building is one of three focus sites along with the Fort Point neighborhood and Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester. The climate change competition is intended to develop strategies for rising sea Read More…