Battery Coastal Resilience to Protect Lower Manhattan From Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge

Map of Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency Projects. Credit: NYCEDC

State of the City Project Will Protect 100,000 New Yorkers 
From Coastal Storms, Create 400 Construction Jobs

New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced the groundbreaking of Battery Coastal Resilience, a critical, $200-million component of the overall Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency strategy. Led by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation (NYC Parks), and the Mayor’s Office of Climate & Environmental Justice (MOCEJ), Battery Coastal Resilience — a key initiative announced in Mayor Adams’ State of the City address earlier this year — will rebuild and elevate the wharf promenade in The Battery, staying true to the character and uses of the park while protecting against projected sea level rise in the year 2100. The project is expected to be complete in 2026 and will protect the 100,000 residents, 300,000 jobs, and 12,000 businesses that call lower Manhattan home. Additionally, the project will create 400 construction jobs.

Mayor Adams today also called on the federal government to create a regular, recurring source of federal funding for coastal infrastructure that would enable New York City to complete critical resiliency projects. For every $1 invested in coastal infrastructure projects, $6 is saved in recovery costs. A regular, recurring funding program would help New York City more reliably access federal funding for crucial projects to protect more New Yorkers from climate change hazards.

“We’re building a more resilient, more sustainable city for today’s New Yorkers and for generations to come, and our coastal resiliency projects are key pieces of that work,” said Mayor Adams. “The Battery Coastal Resilience project will help protect Lower Manhattan from the stronger storms that climate change is bringing while ensuring that New Yorkers can still enjoy the beautiful green space and cultural icons that The Battery has come to be known for. We’re investing billions in green and grey infrastructure across the city to ensure that New York City is ready for whatever Mother Nature can throw at us. And because the need for these projects isn’t going away any time soon, we need the federal government to establish reliable sources of funding for key coastal resiliency work across the country.”

According to the New York City Panel on Climate Change (NPCC), coastal New York City is experiencing higher rates of sea level rise than the global average. NPCC projects, at the higher end, 23 inches of sea level rise by the 2050s and 65 inches of sea level rise by 2100. The project will protect New Yorkers from that sea level rise and will include the reconstruction of the deteriorating wharf; preservation and enhancement of the park’s character, gardens, and community amenities; memorials and historic monuments; adaptability to future passenger ferry needs, universally accessible design principles; and more.

Battery Coastal Resilience has received a Platinum award from the Institute for Sustainable Infrastructure’s Envision program, which promotes industry-wide sustainability metrics and fosters cost-effective, energy-efficient, and adaptable long-term infrastructure investments. Battery Coastal Resilience is the first major project in the city to meet the commitments of the NYC Clean Construction Accelerator of reducing embodied emissions by over 50 percent. Battery Coastal Resilience will use low-carbon and recycled materials, and it will reduce truck traffic through using barge transportation. This equates to the removal of more than 2,000 trucks from the roadways in Lower Manhattan, avoiding approximately 400 metric tons of carbon emissions. Battery Coastal Resilience exemplifies the way that mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to climate change can be complementary in major capital projects. This strategy will be critical as more coastal resiliency projects continue throughout the city and raises the bar to achieve for future climate solutions.  Battery Coastal Resilience exemplifies the way that mitigating greenhouse gas emissions and adapting to climate change can be complementary in major capital projects. This strategy will be critical as more coastal resiliency projects continue throughout the city and raises the bar to achieve for future climate solutions. 

Also highlighted today was the South Battery Park City Resiliency Project (SBPCR), a Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency initiative led by the Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) and currently under construction adjacent to the Battery Coastal Resilience site. Creating a physical tie-in with Battery Coastal Resilience, SBPCR will create an integrated coastal flood risk management system extending along the northern border of Battery Park, across Pier A Plaza, through a rebuilt Wagner Park, and to the Museum of Jewish Heritage.

Under the Adams administration, the city is embarking on historic, multibillion-dollar work to fight climate hazards and advance environmental justice. The projects in The Battery are part of over $1.7 billion in Lower Manhattan Coastal Resiliency climate adaptation capital investments. These investments include the $350 million Brooklyn Bridge-Montgomery Coastal Resilience, which began construction in fall of 2022. Construction is also advancing on the $1.45 billion East Side Coastal Resiliency project, with the first two public areas opening in 2022 and 2023, and other coastal projects are in progress in all five boroughs. For example, as part of the city’s citywide efforts to reduce coastal risk, the administration recently completed construction on the Old Howard Beach Street project, which will protect New Yorkers from what would have been routine tidal flooding in 2050.