Mayor James J. Fiorentini > Press Release

March 26, 2009
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Riverbank along Riverside Avenue to Receive Badly-Needed Repair

HAVERHILL- Mayor James J. Fiorentini today announced that the City of Haverhill has been awarded a $386,000 grant from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Massachusetts Department of Conservation Resources (DCR) to restore the banks of the Merrimack River near Riverside Avenue that were washed away and eroded during the infamous May 2006 floods.

The grant, along with the City Wastewater Department’s matching share, represents a half-million dollar effort to stabilize Riverside Avenue and the Merrimack River bank behind Haverhill Stadium.

“I’m thrilled that the City now has the federal and state resources necessary to finally mitigate this problem,” announced Mayor Fiorentini to a crowd of about a dozen thrilled neighbors at the intersection of Riverside Avenue and Nettleton Avenue.  “We’ve been diligent about chasing down federal disaster funds related to those floods, and this is one the biggest remaining issues now being addressed,” added the Mayor.  “Riverside residents will be able to travel this street without worry again.”

Many of the neighbors have been worried about the possibility of further erosion and roadway and property damage for 3 years.

The work will last an entire construction season and will replace with soil and natural fill material the riverbank below a section of Riverside Avenue.

The Mayor credited Deputy Public Works Director and Water/Wastewater Department Head Robert Ward with the application for these funds.