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Public Works Seeks $449,710 MVP Grant to Build Flooding Database and Advance Green Infrastructure
Summary
Docket 0399 would authorize acceptance and expenditure of a $449,710 Massachusetts MVP action grant for a city project to build a crowdsourced flooding database, prioritize stormwater and riverine flood locations for green infrastructure designs, and engage watershed partners and contractors.
Councilor Gabriela Colette Zapata introduced Docket 0399 at the April 7 committee hearing: a message and order asking the council to authorize the city to accept and expend $449,710 in a Boston MVP Action Grant from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs to be administered by the Public Works Department.
Rachel Luna, interim director of green infrastructure for the city, presented a project to build a flooding database and map focused on inland stormwater and riverine flooding. "Stormwater is generated when rain falls on impervious surfaces like roads, roofs, driveways, and sidewalks, and runs off rather than absorbing into the ground," Luna said, describing a crowdsourcing tool available in eight languages that allows residents to pin observations, upload photos, record the date, describe whether water is still or flowing, and note local impacts. Luna reported about 117 observations had been submitted as of the prior Friday.
The project will use the collected, crowd-sourced data and other inputs (including 311 reports) to prioritize locations for conceptual green infrastructure designs such as bioretention, rain gardens, tree pits and constructed wetlands. Luna said the watershed associations — Charles River Watershed, Neponset River Watershed and Mystic River Watershed — are contracted to lead community engagement, and that Weston & Sampson is the contracted technology partner to build the database.
Councilors asked about coordination with other authorities and funding for installation. Luna said the Office of Climate Resilience handles coastal flooding and the mapping team will share data with Boston Water and Sewer for catch-basin cleaning and with state partners such as the Department of Conservation and Recreation when appropriate. Luna said the MVP grant covers data collection and design work; installation is not included and would require capital budget requests in future fiscal years. Prioritization for construction will be based on the data set and 311 reports, she said.
Councilors voiced support for outreach, multilingual access and cross-agency coordination; Chair Zapata said she would recommend forwarding the matter to the full council. No committee vote was recorded at the hearing.
