Committee members said they joined a WSDOT meeting about a NOAA-funded coastal resilience study focused on Highway 112 and surrounding coastal corridors. The study will map vulnerabilities, assess alternatives for back-route access, and consider practical, non-flooding alignments that would remain passable in major weather events.

WSDOT planners and local engineers discussed lidar, GIS and other mapping tools to identify candidate routes. County staff asked that any back-route concept consider connections to Hokotsa (Hoko) Road and nearby communities so the route would serve populated areas and park access. WSDOT planners cautioned against investing in roads that would simply flood in the same storm events and said the study team will prioritize routes that would provide a durable alternative in high-severity events.

Committee members described the work as early-stage and study-focused; WSDOT has a significant grant to do the planning and will hold additional public meetings as the work proceeds. No county action was taken by the advisory committee during the Sept. 18 discussion, which served as an information update from members who had attended the planning meeting.

Background: Speakers referenced a major past slide that temporarily cut access and noted community-organized back-route efforts had provided temporary access during past washouts. The WSDOT/NOAA project aims to move from ad-hoc responses toward a studied, funded resilience approach.