By Amalia Wompa
As hurricane season approaches, the city is preparing an updated plan to tackle the challenges posed by its coastline.
City Manager Brian Shea shared plans at last week’s City Council meeting for a new comprehensive Natural Resources Inventory, an initiative aimed at helping the city better understand and respond to environmental pressures. Shea noted the city’s current plan, last updated in 1971, “is older than I am.”
To support the project, the Rye Sustainability Foundation secured a $70,000 grant through the New York Sea Grant program, with additional backing from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Long Island Sound Partnership.
“The project aligns with the city’s broad sustainability and climate initiatives,” Shea said, “and will provide important baseline information that can support future planning, policy, development, and grant applications.”
Shea also presented an overview of FEMA codes and ordinances tied to the city’s ongoing infrastructure efforts. In 2022, Rye received a $252,000 grant through the federal Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program to evaluate potential updates to the city’s building codes, flood plain ordinances, and enforcement practices.
The program includes flood plain management training for building inspectors and is expected to improve the city’s competitiveness for future FEMA funding.
“Together, the FEMA work and the NRI work are going to help us make policy decisions about zoning, land use, codes, flood resiliency, and storm resiliency,” said Mayor Josh Nathan.
The broader Rye community will benefit from emergency preparedness training through the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services.
In collaboration with the New York National Guard, the city will host training sessions in July to teach participants how to respond quickly during emergencies and potentially save lives during crises such as severe flooding.
Councilmember Jamie Jensen encouraged residents to take part in the training, pointing to Rye’s recent history with flooding, most notably when Hurricane Ida struck the region in September 2021.
“It hasn’t been that long since we’ve been in a flood situation,” she said, “and we should remember that when these opportunities become available, we should take advantage of them.”
Bordered by the Long Island Sound and shaped by a network of estuaries, marshes, and wetlands, Rye faces coastal vulnerabilities unlike many inland communities in Westchester. Although flooding is one of the city’s biggest concerns, the updated plan will also guide efforts related to land preservation, habitat restoration, invasive species management, expanded tree canopy coverage, and improved public access to waterfront trails and waterways.
Rye is also working with Biohabitats, an environmental consulting firm, to identify additional opportunities for environmental restoration and resiliency efforts. Shea said he expects to have further information on those ready to share in June or July.
“It’s a collective,” Nathan said in summation of all the initiatives Shea presented. “We’re bringing together a whole lot of work that really commenced following Hurricane Ida.
“For a long period of time, we experienced terrible catastrophes in this community, as did our neighboring communities. A lot of the work that started along the way is now very much activated and coming to a head. That’s important to keep in mind because these will be hot topics during this summer and fall.”
