Some cities around the world are pulling back from shorelines, as rising seas from increased flooding. But so far, retreat appears out of the question for Atlantic City, New Jersey.
The breezy getaway town is on the water on a barrier, which was once reachable only by boat but in modern times via a causeway.
The city fully occupies a small piece of land, water on either side, just above sea level.
“We love our residents,” said Barbara Woolley-Dillon, former Atlantic City Planning and Development Director. “We have one of the most diverse populations… it’s a great place to be, and we have such a thriving community that we want to do everything we can to keep it intact.”
There is no obvious place for 38,500 residents, about 33% Black, to go.
The city, popular with vacation goers in the Eastern U.S., particularly in the summer, brings in billions of dollars in revenue, another incentive to keep it intact as long as possible.
“Atlantic City is a seven billion dollar a year economic engine” that benefits all of southern New Jersey and must be maintained, said Jim Rutala, an Atlantic City planning contractor.
Still, the flooding is getting deeper and more frequent. In 1910, researchers installed a tide gauge at the end of Steel Pier Amusement Park.
The gauge shows the sea has risen a foot and a half since then, more than double the global mean sea level rise.
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