Mayor Keith James lays out next phases of flooding valve project
City officials will be installing about 35 valves throughout the next few months to prevent coastal flooding from the rise in sea levels.
City officials will be installing about 35 valves throughout the next few months to prevent coastal flooding from the rise in sea levels.
City officials will be installing about 35 valves throughout the next few months to prevent coastal flooding from the rise in sea levels.
West Palm Beach Mayor Keith James announced the next phases of the "Flood Mitigation Tidal Valve Project," aiming to mitigate street flooding along Flagler Drive.
City officials will be installing about 35 valves throughout the next months to prevent coastal flooding from the rise in sea levels.
"You've got flooding on the streets. So, it is a tremendous inconvenience," Mayor Keith James said. "We’ve heard the residents, and certainly it was a priority of my administration to try to work toward a solution."
The project spans from 34th Street to South Flagler Court. A state grant of $105,000 will be making this project a possibility for the city.
Republican Representative Rick Roth of District 85 was one state lawmaker behind the push for these city funds.
"Let’s go ahead and be proactive. That’s what we want to do as the state of Florida, as the legislature, is to really try to determine what future problem we’re going to have and let’s start addressing them," Roth said.
There are four valves currently installed under phase one of the project. They'll be installing more valves for phase two, which is scheduled for spring 2022.
City leaders said they'll be installing larger valves through spring of 2023, and expect the project to be complete by then.
With flooding expected to be a major issue for the next few decades, officials believe this project will mitigate the dire impacts of natural events like King Tides.