I applaud The Bridge for taking on the subject of how climate change can and probably will affect Concord and look forward to future articles on this topic.
Information about flooding, fire, wind and heat risks is already widely available from the non-profit First Street Foundation and its subsidiary RiskFactor.com. RiskFactor is used by a variety of websites, including Redfin and Realtor.com, to provide estimates of flooding, fire, heat and wind risk to property. When one enables “flood risk” on these websites, one unfortunate fact about Concord emerges: in the event of a major flooding event, the Keyes Street maintenance yard, the police station and main fire station for Concord will *all* be under at least three feet of water.
It is exactly during a major flood event that townsfolk will need the services of the town and its safety personnel. It is unclear to me how these personnel can effectively and efficiently provide needed services during the time core facilities are impaired by standing water. I am unsure what steps the town is taking to address this vulnerability and would certainly enjoy follow-up by The Bridge to investigate and inform.
Bob Schulman
Main Street