The City of New Bern is pleased to announce a grant award of $150,000 from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s (NFWF) National Coastal Resilience Fund to continue its important work to create a Resiliency and Hazard Mitigation Plan and become a more resilient city.
This federal grant, one of 46 awarded across the country, will allow the City of New Bern to continue the in-depth planning necessary to identify priority restoration sites with feedback from our residents and stakeholders. These funds will also be used to develop engineering and design plans for a nature-based infrastructure project to reduce flood risk to our most vulnerable communities.
The City’s resiliency planning process is currently underway. The next phase is designed to identify specific areas of focus within the City’s riverine locations and ecosystems both within and contiguous to the Neuse and Trent Rivers and areas prone to flooding. This includes the City’s most vulnerable communities, such as the Greater Duffyfield and Greater Five Points neighborhoods as well as the Riverside and Downtown Historic Districts, listed on the National Register of Historic Properties. Planning in each of these areas will consider living shorelines that will offer storm surge protection of the waterfront areas and enhance the rivers’ natural equilibrium and habitats, protecting both from the hazards associated with flooding.
“This was a competitive national grant and it is great to see New Bern receive recognition on the national stage,” said Amanda Ohlensehlen, Community & Economic Development Manager for the City of New Bern. “NFWF’s investment in our efforts to improve resiliency while also respecting riverine and natural habitats allows us to achieve our environmental goals, and creates a valuable, collaborative partnership to help us visualize solutions.”
The City’s work with NFWF will build upon extensive efforts to make New Bern more resilient and protect its most vulnerable neighborhoods from extreme weather events. This grant award would not have been possible without significant contribution from our partners: Moffatt & Nichol, FernLeaf Interactive, Lisa Craig Group, NC Division of Coastal Management, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and the NC Coastal Federation.
By Colleen Roberts, Public Information Officer, City of New Bern