The City of Boston’s Planning Department and Office of Climate Resilience are offering no-cost home assessments to assist Port Norfolk households in evaluating potential flood risk hazards and retrofit measures specific to their home. These assessments will be conducted by a professional engineering firm and will result in a brief report provided to each participating household. All Port Norfolk residents are encouraged to apply, though priority will be given to the buildings facing near-term risk (i.e. that fall within the boundary of a 1% chance annual flood scenario with 9” of Sea Level Rise in the 2030s). Both homeowners and renters are eligible to apply, but renters will need their landlord’s approval to move forward with an assessment. For more information, visit: www.bostonplans.org/planning-zoning/planning-initiatives/resilient-port-norfolk

Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis with participating households expected to be notified by late-January 2026.

Examples of information collected include: Building age, square footage, Base Flood Elevation (BFE), Foundation materials, type of heating and location relative to BFE, Grading/landscape materials, etc.

Examples of potential recommendations for retrofit measures include: Installation of sump pumps and foundation waterproofing, Installation of backwater valves, Elevation and/or replacement of critical below-grade utility systems and outlets, Landscape and other drainage improvements, Installation of flood-resistant materials, etc.