Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment

Thank you for your interest in the City of Miami Beach Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan. The Vulnerability Assessment has been completed and is available for viewing. A draft of the Adaptation Plan will be uploaded soon for your review and feedback.

Miami Beach is developing a Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan funded by the Resilient Florida grant program. The Vulnerability Assessment analyzes the impact of sea level rise and compound flooding on the city from a combination of factors including sea level rise, groundwater, and storm surge. This analysis provides a detailed view of the city’s flood risk to assets and infrastructure, which enables the city to compete for additional Resilient Florida grant funding. Miami Beach has successfully been awarded more than $79 million in Resilient Florida grant funding to-date. Through this initiative, the City provided community members with opportunities to share their experiences with flood risk in their neighborhoods, how this risk has affected them, and how the city can approach flood mitigation and sea level rise adaptation to best serve the community’s needs.

The Vulnerability Assessment enables the city to evaluate the risk of flooding and sea level rise to its assets and prioritize them for adaptation. The Vulnerability Assessment's findings are used in tandem with previous plans and studies such as the Jacobs Neighborhood Prioritization Plan, Blue Green Infrastructure Concept Plan and Road Elevation (2020), in addition to other relevant sources. to develop a comprehensive Adaptation Plan to protect vulnerable assets through the year 2100. This report was developed in coordination with the Stormwater Modelling and Master Plan Update developed by the Public Works Department and adopted by the City Commission in March 2024.

The City has several existing policies, studies, and plans that detail flood protection strategies. The Sea Level Rise Adaptation Plan identifies additional and supplemental strategies to provide flood protection through the end of the century. Unlike traditional planning approaches, an adaptation plan addresses uncertainties of the future and can adjust over time as new information becomes available and climate conditions change. This flexible approach provides a structured, yet adaptable roadmap to inform major flood protection investments.

The Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan work in tandem to identify the City’s growing sea level rise-driven flood risks and document targeted strategies to address both near- and long-term flood protection gaps in existing efforts.

For information on flood awareness, please visit our flood awareness resource page.

Community Focus Groups

Residents and businesses are critical to assessing flood risk in the city. Over 160 community members participated through focus groups and workshops throughout 2023. Eight small community focus groups and three pop-up workshops were held between June and November of 2023 to record resident and business experiences with flooding.

During these one-hour long group interviews, participants joined online calls with the City’s consultants and 4 other interviewees from their district - South, Mid-, or North Beach - to share their experiences with flooding and how they were impacted by those experiences. Additionally, they were asked for input on the community facilities and infrastructure that residents and business owners believe should be focused on for flood protection. Findings from the community focus groups were incorporated in the assessment of the importance of City assets to the community and how they are impacted by flooding.

Pop-Up Workshops

As a component of the Assessment, the City and its consulting team emphasized an analysis of social vulnerability and community sensitivity to sea level rise and compound flooding. The analysis included an extensive community engagement effort in which Miami Beach residents and businesses provided input on their experiences with flooding and their priorities for adaptation. The community meetings included the events below:

Pop-Up Workshops (Fall 2023):
- The City engaged over 130 community stakeholders at local events in the form of “pop-up” tables. These tables allowed community members to give feedback quickly and informally at an event that they had already planned to attend. There were three events hosted: one for South Beach, one for Mid Beach, and one for North Beach.
- North Beach Tabling - Hispanic Heritage Festival
  - Where: North Beach Open Space Park (8101 Collins Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33141)
  - When: 6 PM to 9 PM on Friday, October 13, 2023
- South Beach Tabling - MB Culture Crawl
  - Where: Miami Beach Botanical Garden (2000 Convention Ctr Dr, Miami Beach, FL 33139)
  - When: 6 PM to 9 PM on Thursday, October 19, 2023
- Mid Beach Tabling - Mark Samuelian Chess Challenge
  - Where: Scott Rakow Youth Center (2700 Sheridan Ave, Miami Beach, FL 33140)
  - When: 11 AM to 1 PM on Sunday, November 5, 2023
Workshop on Adaptation Strategy Prioritization (August 2024):
- This was held as a formal workshop and review of the Vulnerability Assessment findings with City staff across many departments. Staff was also invited to provide feedback and information on adaptation strategy and metrics planning.

Resilient Florida Program

The Resilient Florida Grant Program is administered by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) and provides funding for plans and projects that analyze and address vulnerabilities to sea level rise and other flooding and environmental hazards. Through the completion of the SLR Vulnerability Assessment, the City of Miami Beach may apply for funding from the FDEP Resilient Florida Program to protect vulnerable assets identified in the assessment. Miami Beach has successfully received over $79 Million from the Resilient Florida Program to-date to fund projects around the city.

For more information, visit the Resilient Florida Grant Program Website: Resilient Florida Grants | Florida Department of Environmental Protection

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What is the Vulnerability Assessment?

A: Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessments are tools used by communities across Florida to evaluate the risk posed to their critical infrastructure and assets by sea level rise and various types of flooding related to sea level rise.

Q: What is the Adaptation Plan?

A: Miami Beach is developing an Adaptation Plan that will draw upon findings in the vulnerability assessment to evaluate, describe, and visualize applicable sea level rise adaptation strategies to protect assets and neighborhoods through the year 2100.

Q: What are the types of assets and infrastructure included in the Assessment?

A: The assets and infrastructure that are assessed in this project range from critical roadways and evacuation routes to culturally significant structures like the Bass Museum and Normandy Fountain. Also included are critical buildings, like fire stations, and environmental assets, which include parks and the beach walk

Q: How is it different from the Stormwater Modelling and Master Plan Update?

A: These two documents will be used in tandem to get a more comprehensive picture of flooding and adaptation in Miami Beach. The Vulnerability Assessment evaluates the risk that sea level rise creates for our critical infrastructure, historic structures, environmental assets, and community spaces. The Stormwater Modelling and Master Plan Update analyzes stormwater flow through the city and presents a plan to ensure the water drains and does not pool, particularly in public right of ways.

Thank you for your interest in the City of Miami Beach Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Plan. The Vulnerability Assessment has been completed and is available for viewing. A draft of the Adaptation Plan will be uploaded soon for your review and feedback.

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