CAMBRIDGE, Md. - The city of Cambridge is building a temporary earthen embankment along Water Street to show people what a future flood barrier could look like on the Choptank Riverfront.
The short section of berm, now under construction near Long Wharf Park, is part of the Make Cambridge Resilient shoreline project. The goal is to give the community a chance to see the height and footprint of a planned flood barrier before any permanent construction begins.
Project manager Lawrence White said Cambridge and Dorchester County are already dealing with stronger coastal storms and heavier rainfall. He said so-called nuisance flooding now cuts off access to parks and some neighborhoods during high tides, and that by 2050 those problems could become a daily occurrence if nothing changes.
The broader plan pairs an earthen and rock embankment with a “living shoreline” designed to absorb wave energy and create habitat along the river. Behind the berm, engineers also plan to upgrade stormwater systems and install pump stations so heavy rain can be moved back out to the river more quickly after storms.
Senior project manager Megan Barniea with Bayland Consultants and Designers said the existing bulkhead along this stretch of shore sits around three to three and a half feet above sea level. The berm is designed to reach about seven feet, which lines up with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s target elevation for a 100 year storm plus an extra safety margin.
Barniea said the sample section is also meant to answer questions from neighbors about views and access to the water. The model is being built so people can see that they will still be able to look out over the river from the street or while walking their dogs.
Design work on the project began in 2019 under a FEMA flood mitigation grant. White said the team is now roughly 30 percent through detailed design and expects to finish plans next year. Construction is projected to take about two additional years.
The test berm is expected to remain in place for about two weeks. Signs on site direct people to information about the Make Cambridge Resilient project and how to share comments on the proposal.