Consultants outline flood, sea‑level rise risks for Cloud Lake, recommend mix of policy and infrastructure steps

Tetra Tech consultant Carley Klapper presented the Palm Beach County Multi-Jurisdictional Comprehensive Vulnerability Assessment and told the Council the study’s purpose was to "identify Town critical assets at risk, determine level of exposure at specific flood scenarios, identify flooding focus areas, and obtain and incorporate public/stakeholder feedback." The presentation outlined both non-structural recommendations — policy and code updates for landscaping and seawalls, community education, and coordination on stormwater analysis with SFWMD — and structural options such as increasing road elevation, stormwater retrofits, pump stations, septic-to-sewer conversion, and elevating seawalls. The consultants also listed likely funding avenues including Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC), Community Development Block Grants (CDBG), Resilient Florida Grants, Hazard Mitigation Grants, EPA and State clean-water programs, and Elevate Florida Housing grants.

The Council retained a copy of the presentation with the Town Clerk. The briefing gave the Council a menu of adaptations and grant programs to pursue; staff and consultants flagged the next steps as local asset-mapping, public outreach in Cloud Lake, and follow-up on specific grant eligibility and timelines. Carley Klapper and Georgia Vincent represented Tetra Tech at the meeting and answered Council questions about how grant programs and non-structural policy updates could be phased over multiple years.