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July
30, 2014
By
Olivia Fecteau
Wakefield,
R.I. - Rhode Island's coastline has been damaged by catastrophic storms
and rising sea levels throughout the last several years, and architects
say it is changing how they do business.
"Architects
and builders are slow to change, particularly here in New England,
where we tend to be kind of traditional," Andrew Baer said.
Baer,
who is a partner at Oyster Works
design firm in Charlestown along with architect Megan Moynihan, is
planning and designing a new boathouse for YMCA Camp Fuller in
Wakefield. The current boathouse, built more than 50 years ago,
is damaged from wind and water, and Baer said their plan addresses a
changing climate.
"We've
built the foundation as a pier structure so that when there's flooding,
the water can flow right under the building," Moynihan said.
Baer and Moynihan tell NBC 10 they've taken cues
from builders in coastal cities such as New Orleans and Miami as the
try to prepare for climate changes that result in rising sea levels and
increasingly frequent catastrophes.
You
can see these doors here and how much they've been beaten up by water
coming in and coming out and that's really just from storm
surges," Peter Swain, executive director at Camp Fuller, said,
showing NBC 10 the damage to the boathouse.
You can't do much about the salt air (erosion), but
the building will be built to withstand whatever Mother Nature brings
us," Diane Nahabedian, chief marketing officer for the YMCA, said.
The architects say they are addressing the
challenge of climate change in several ways. First, the new
boathouse will be elevated with a pier structure foundation to allow
stormwater to flow in and out more easily. They also plan to
build the boathouse with interior and exterior material that will not
be as susceptible to structural damage and mold. The builders say
they will also revamp landscaping and vegetation to protect the ground
near the boathouse from further erosion.
Swain
showed NBC 10 where the foundation of the boathouse is cracked already.
"Storm
surges have come in and out of the cove," Swain said.
"They've really eroded away the soil below the building.
It's starting to tip down, essentially."
The
builders say they are still getting necessary zoning permits for
construction. Nahabedian tells NBC 10 a groundbreaking ceremony will
take place on Saturday at 5 p.m., and construction is expected to begin
this fall.
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