Resilient Neighborhoods Sheepshead Bay Sheepshead Bay 1 This study was funded through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery Program (CDBG-DR), as [insert image location] part of the New York City Department of City Planning’s Resilient Neighborhoods Initiative. Sheepshead Bay Road Resilient Neighborhoods Sheepshead Bay THE CITY OF NEW YORK MAYOR BILL DE BLASIO DEPARTMENT OF CITY PLANNING MARISA LAGO, DIRECTOR May 2017 www.nyc.gov/resilientneighborhoods Sheepshead Bay Road FOREWORD Sheepshead Bay is a waterfront community in Brooklyn with a long history of attracting New Yorkers to its shores for an array of recreational activities. From its early beginnings as a summer retreat with hotels and recreational fishing, to its identity today as a vibrant residential community, the neighborhood is deeply connected to the waterfront with numerous yacht clubs and marinas. Flooding from coastal storms is a common occurrence in much of the area. However, Hurricane Sandy in 2012 was much more severe than anything that had happened before, or in any storm since. The Resilient Neighborhoods initiative was launched by the Department of City Planning (DCP) shortly after Hurricane Sandy. This report is the culmination of over three years of research, outreach, and hard work by DCP, working closely with floodplain residents, businesses, and local leaders to identify strategies to reduce flood risk and build a more resilient and vibrant neighborhood. This report includes recommendations for updating specific zoning and land use regulations, as well as investments in coastal infrastructure and other programs. The conclusions of this report will guide updates to the citywide flood resiliency text amendment that DCP is currently developing. This plan is the beginning of a conversation and a commitment to work with Sheepshead Bay to ensure the community’s ongoing vibrancy and resiliency. Marisa Lago Department of City Planning TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction [pages 2- 9] 2 Resiliency Planning in New York City 4 Regulatory Context 6 Outreach Process 9 Community Risk Profile [pages 10 - 29] History 10 Flood Risk Vulnerabilities 12 Household/Commercial Financial Vulnerabilities 15 Building/Zoning Conditions 18 Summary of resiliency challenges and Issues 29 Resiliency Framework [pages 30 - 38] Framework 30 Framework Map 31 Zoning Modifications 32 Neighborhood Strategies 33 Conclusion 41 Glossary of Key Terms 42 Acknowledgments 44 Resources 45 Sheepshead Bay 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY Hurricane Sandy’s devastating impacts on New York City served as a vivid reminder of the city’s vulnerability to coastal storms and flooding. With climate change, storms like Sandy are expected to increase in frequency and severity in the future, putting New Yorkers living and working on the waterfront at even greater risk. Yet, as Sandy also demonstrated, resilient building design can significantly reduce the damage caused by flooding and enable homes and businesses to be reoccupied sooner. By combining resilient building with careful land use planning and strategic investment in infrastructure, the city can adapt to challenging environmental conditions over time and create neighborhoods that are both vibrant and able to withstand and recover quickly from future floods. Resilient Neighborhoods is a place-based planning initiative, led by the New York City Department of City Planning in collaboration with communities and other agencies, to identify strategies for the continued vitality and resiliency of ten neighborhoods in the city’s floodplain. This report provides details on Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn. Sheepshead Bay was selected for this study because of its vulnerability to flooding from coastal storm surge and unique built form. The area includes a diverse array of lot sizes and building types ranging from small sunken bungalows to large retail spaces and multi-family apartment buildings. These typologies raise numerous challenges in meeting federal floodproofing standards under existing zoning. Resilient Neighborhoods has been guided by three primary goals, each with a set of strategies designed to address resiliency-related issues in Sheepshead Bay: Reducing flood risk Modify zoning provisions to provide flexibility to homeowners seeking to retrofit and floodproof existing buildings and encourage new development to be more resilient.. Develop zoning changes to ensure that existing buildings and new developments can comply with resiliency requirements. Planning for adaptation over time With projected climate change and associated sea level rise, flood risks are expected to increase in Sheepshead Bay over time. To improve the neighborhood’s longterm resilience against these increasing risks, DCP will work to advance coastal protection strategies. DCP is coordinating with partner agencies and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on long-term flood protection strategies at both the neighborhood scale and within Jamaica Bay. Creating resilient, vibrant neighborhoods Promote residential and commercial vibrancy by supporting active streets and local businesses. DCP is developing design strategies for commercial corridors in the floodplain that mitigate flood risk while maintaining active retail uses and strengthen historic waterfront communities like Sheepshead Bay. DCP is also working with partner agencies such as Small Business Services to increase the capacity of local businesses in the floodplain. In addition, this report provides a detailed description of the outreach, research, and analysis conducted, as well as an overview of the planning framework and regulatory context for these efforts. A glossary of key terms is provided following the conclusion. The recommendations outlined in this report include specific actions to be undertaken in the short-term, as well as broader strategies that can guide an ongoing response to evolving risks and changing conditions, to promote equity, livability, and safety. 2 RESILIENT NEIGHBORHOODS BULKHEADS FLOODPROOFED BUILDINGS often located on private property, offer would be resilient and promote the waterfront properties an added level of commercial vibrancy of Emmons protection from waves Avenue MARITIME USES characterize the neighborhood’s SHORELINE connection to the waterfront is the first level of defense for the neighborhood Sheepshead Bay 3 Resiliency Planning in New York City Following Hurricane Sandy in October 2012, the City The Sheepshead Bay study is a product of collaboration developed A Stronger, More Resilient New York, which between DCP, and other City partners, including laid out a detailed action plan for rebuilding post-Sandy the Mayor’s Offices of Recovery and Resiliency and and making the city’s coastal communities, buildings, Housing Recovery Operations. In addition, the process and infrastructure more resilient in the long-term. The built on public input previously generated through other City has made significant progress implementing the initiatives, such as the New York State’s Community plan, including funding a $20 billion climate resiliency Reconstruction Program. program, advancing housing recovery through the Build it Back program, and making long-term resiliency a reality by investing in infrastructure upgrades. Drawing THE BRONX on this work and earlier planning efforts, the City released in Spring 2015 OneNYC: The Plan for a Strong Edgewater Park and Just City, a long-term strategy to address the city’s most pressing challenges, including a rapidly growing Harding Park population, rising inequality, aging infrastructure, and climate change. MANHATTAN Resilient Neighborhoods One of the projects described in OneNYC is Resilient West Chelsea Neighborhoods, a place-based planning initiative to identify tailored strategies, including zoning and land East Village / QUEENS use changes, to support the vitality and resiliency of Lower East Side / communities in New York City’s floodplain. Based Two Bridges on collaboration with residents, stakeholders, elected officials, and other City agencies, the initiative focuses Hamilton Beach / Old on ten study areas located in all five boroughs that Howard Beach represent a variety of demographic and built conditions. Canarsie The Department of City Planning (DCP) identified BROOKLYN these study areas because they present specific land use, Broad zoning, and other resiliency issues that cannot be fully Channel addressed by citywide zoning changes. STATEN ISLAND Gerritsen Beach Sheepshead Bay was selected for this study because the neighborhood was severely flooded with waters reaching Sheepshead Rockaway Park / four to eight feet above grade. Furthermore, residential East Shore Bay Rockaway Beach buildings in Sheepshead present unique retrofitting challenges that are not easily resolved under existing federal and local regulations. Resilient Neighborhoods Study Area 1% annual chance floodplain 4 RESILIENT NEIGHBORHOODS Sheepshead Bay 5 Regulatory Context A wide array of programs and regulations at various levels Freeboard is an amount of of government shape the City’s approach to managing Design Flood height required above the Elevation (DFE) BFE to provide additional flood risk and promoting resilient development. In Base Flood Elevation protection from flooding the United States, floodplain regulation begins with (B) + Freeboard Flood Insurance Rate Maps (FIRMs), which the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) creates and maintains. The maps show the extent and elevation to reeoard DFE which