USACE’s San Francisco District Commander, LTC Travis Rayfield, signed an agreement with leaders from the Santa Clara Valley Water District and the California State Coastal Conservancy yesterday on a $177 million landmark project to reduce the risk of flooding in a densely populated region of the South Bay.
The project will safeguard homes and businesses in an area at risk of tidal surges and sea level rise by restoring four miles of levees as well as some 2,900 acres of tidal marsh habitat.
According to USACE, the plan also includes construction of four miles of the San Francisco Bay Trail.
The federal government will contribute approximately $74 million to the $177 million project. The state of California will contribute $58 million and the Santa Clara Valley Water District’s share is about $45 million.
The South San Francisco Bay Shoreline Project is said to be the “largest restoration project west of the Mississippi River.”