Public commenter urges low-cost deployable barriers; board to request formal quotes and convene departments

Keith Bradley, speaking as a member of the public, told the board on May 19 that the town should consider deployable flood barriers (often called Tiger Dams or box walls) as a low-cost, removable alternative to large permanent works. Bradley argued that deployables could provide similar short-term protection at a fraction of the cost and urged the town to pilot them rather than wait for multi-year engineering efforts.

“We have been studying this and all we've gotten out of the master plan so far is identification. Do something,” Bradley said, urging the board to try deployables rather than spending $2 million on a permanent detention structure. He offered rough cost figures that were discussed in the meeting: a deployable scheme could cost in the low tens of thousands (Bradley cited $90,000 as a back-of-envelope estimate for some locations, and noted $150,000 for a set of deployables and related works in others), while a true benefit-cost/permitting design and construction approach could reach into the millions.

Board members acknowledged the potential and said they had met with a Tiger Dam representative. The board asked staff to request formal proposals and cost estimates from Tiger Dam and from a separate box-wall supplier, and to convene fire, public works, emergency management and risk-management staff to discuss deployment responsibility, insurance and storage logistics before any pilot deployment.

Next steps: obtain vendor quotes for selected inland and coastal locations, schedule a meeting with relevant town departments to discuss operational and insurance considerations, and evaluate whether to include deployables as an option in the master plan.