Resilient Bridgeport is a prototype for the region’s coastal cities. Led by the State of Connecticut, it consists of a resilience strategy and pilot projects focused on protecting homes, businesses and infrastructure in the South End of Bridgeport from chronic and acute flooding in order to foster long-term prosperity in the neighborhood.
DAP Role: Participatory Design, Workshops, Community Outreach & Engagement in support of the Resilient Bridgeport team to host public events. Events include information meetings, surveys, open houses, design workshops & charrettes, discussions, lectures, and tours in and around Bridgeport’s South End. Resilient Bridgeport’s success depends on input from community members and stakeholders most directly affected, and whom the pilot project and strategy are designed to serve.
Project Background: Resilient Bridgeport builds on planning efforts initiated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2013, during the Rebuild by Design Competition. That is when designers and the Bridgeport community began to develop a comprehensive strategy for protecting the city from future storms and the anticipated effects of climate change and sea level rise.
This project will serve as a case study for future projects in Bridgeport and in other coastal cities in the Northeast by demonstrating many of the objectives and possibilities outlined by the overall strategy. The project will show how “living with water” can reduce flooding, while reaffirming the importance of water – flowing water and access to water — to Bridgeport’s history and identity.
