RESILIENT EDGEMERE INITIATIVE

URBAN CLIMATE ACTION STRATEGY

YEAR

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CLIENT

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ROLE

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TEAM

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AWARDS

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PRESS

2015 - ongoing

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People of Edgemere, QN

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Project lead; research; community engagement; master planning strategy; design and project management

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NYC Housing Preservation & Development, and various agencies and mayoral Offices

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Bloomberg Philanthropies Cities100 Award for Innovation in Climate Action

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The devastating impacts of Superstorm Sandy brought to light the vulnerability of this economically distressed coastal community.  With housing recovery efforts underway, an opportunity to rebuild community in a holistic and integrated way opened up.

RESEARCH:

HISTORIC, EXISTING & PROJECTED CONDITIONS

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Desktop & archival research

GIS mapping and analysis

Climate projections

Field surveys

Edgemere, QN

The distant Rockaway Peninsula is highly vulnerable to flood risk and coastal storms.  Sea level rise, projected with global climate change, threaten to exacerbate this challenge.

A history of racialized politics and neighborhood clearance in the Urban Renewal era, through the fiscal crisis of the 1970s and the Great Recession of the early 2000s have created a concentration of poverty, lack of services and economic opportunity and widespread neighborhood vacancy in the East Rockaways.

Superstorm Sandy had damaging impacts to residents and property owners along the low-lying waterfront.  In some parts of the neighborhood, storm surge created flood depths up to

8 feet.

1950s - 1990s

Spread of vacancy and distress

1997

Initial community development plan

2008

Great recession stalls development

Residential areas are a mix of elevated homes, existing at-grade homes, vacant lots and vacant or abandoned housing.

The single commercial thoroughfare has heavy vehicular and foot traffic to community facilities, despite limited retail and vacant storefronts.

COMMUNITY & STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT

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Workshops

Key informant interviews

Surveys

Door-to-door outreach

Organization & stakeholder mapping

SCENARIO PLANNING​

RESILIENT EDGEMERE INITIATIVE & COMMUNITY PLAN