Central Street bridge and the Sawmill Brook tide gate.
Photo: Paul Clark
The Federal Emergency Management Agency has announced a nearly $4.5 million grant to the town of Manchester-by-the-Sea to help address flooding problems on Sawmill Brook by the Central Street Bridge.
The $4,484,673 Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant will pay for part of the cost of replacing and upgrading the existing Central Street bridge, as well as removal of an obsolete tide gate to further increase hydraulic capacity and promote fish passage.
Culvert upgrades, installation of a flexible retaining wall and living shoreline to stabilize streambanks along Sawmill Brook, and restoration of a wetland to restore habitat and improve ecological resiliency are also funded by the grant.
The grant amounts to roughly 75 percent of the total $5,979,564 million price tag for this project, which will be funded through the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (MEMA).
“FEMA is extremely pleased to assist Manchester-by-the-Sea in their efforts to build more resilient infrastructure,” said FEMA Region 1 Regional Administrator Lori Ehrlich. “Studies have shown that every dollar spent on mitigation saves roughly $6 in future disaster losses, so grants like this one are smart investments that pay off in the long run and help keep our communities safe.”
FEMA’s Hazard Mitigation Assistance Grants programs are an important source of funding for states and communities seeking long-term solutions that reduce the impact of disasters in the future.
