Cambridge receives FEMA funding to tackle flooding issues

CAMBRIDGE, Md. – Thanks to a $1.7 million FEMA grant, the city of Cambridge is entering the first phase of its Flood Mitigation Project.

Project manager of the Mid Cambridge Resilience Initiative, Lawrence White, said the first chunk of funding will go towards mitigation designs along the Choptank River.

“We’re designing it for overtopping and we’re designing it so we can add to it, if we need to,” White said. “Long term, we’ve developed a city-wide storm water management plan.”

The idea is to develop an innovative hybrid flood mitigation system, with a nature-based living shoreline.

Cambridge is one of the first cities piloting this project on the Eastern Shore, and White said if all is successful, other Delmarva communities will hopefully follow suit.

“Similar projects have been done in different parts of the country, but it’s not a standard practice, so we’re trying to build a center of excellence here, and we’re trying to help other communities,” White said.

Looking forward to what’s to come, Cambridge Mayor, Steve Rideout, said this is the first step in creating a safer community for current and future Cambridge residents.

“The more that Cambridge can show how advanced it is, how progressive it is on these kinds of important issues, I think Cambridge and Dorchester County are starting to bring more people here,” Mayor Rideout said.