I would like to pitch the issue of flooding in Canarsie, Brooklyn due to climate change and the rising sea level. Prior to Hurricane Sandy, Canarsie was not mapped on the floodplain, but now it is expected to flood severely in 30 years. In 2017, the flooding issue in Canarsie was addressed as a part of the Resilient Neighborhoods initiative recommending updating zoning and land use regulations and investing in coastal infrastructure. From since then, some houses in the neighborhood have been elevated to prevent flooding and Governor Hochul announced the beginning of construction on a $14 million project to protect sections along Canarsie’s shoreline from severe flooding by installing tide gate chambers. Most recently, in 2022 the U.S. Army Corps proposed a $52 billion project that could further protect the shorelines of Brooklyn and Queens, including Canarsie, from flooding by building moveable sea barriers across the mouths of major bays and inlets along New York Harbor.

While these all sound like great ways to solve this issue of flooding, how much does Canarsie actually benefit from this? Have there been any changes in the fate of this neighborhood located right on Jamaica Bay? The city is recommending that homeowners retrofit their homes against flooding, but who is paying for these changes?

In building this story, the bulk of my research will come from local news sites and published city documents regarding the Resilient Neighborhoods initiative. I also hope to visit Canarsie Pier and the surrounding areas to access changes that have been made as well as document the conditions. I expect any remaining research to come from any social media groups I may find and interviews with community board members that are familiar with the issue.