Westport’s beaches are getting smaller, and the town now has a price range for putting them back. At a public forum on Oct. 1, RACE Coastal Engineering of Stratford presented options for restoring Compo Main, Compo South, Old Mill, Burying Hill and Canal beaches at a cost of $14.1 million to $54.5 million.
The spread reflects how much sand the town wants to replace. The cheapest option would restore the beaches to roughly their 2014 condition. The most expensive would return them to their 1949 profile. Intermediate options fall between. The work would be funded with bonds, and construction could begin in late 2027.
Unfortunately, they are wasting away. The beaches are going away.
Erik Barbieri, Westport’s director of Parks and Recreation, as reported by the Westport Journal
The storm in the background
The forum came less than three weeks after the Sept. 13 storm, when about seven inches of rain fell on Westport. The town asked residents to file damage reports with the state, which help determine whether homeowners and businesses qualify for federal disaster aid or Small Business Administration loans.
The damage was not limited to the shore. Floodwater reached the Norwalk Avenue and Compo area and parts of downtown, pump stations flooded, and inflow to the town’s treatment plant reached about 12 million gallons a day, according to 06880’s coverage. Its usual flow is about 1.75 million gallons a day.
The Jesup Road bridge near downtown and the Westport Library was severely damaged. Replacing it will take 12 to 18 months, and the town is seeking $172,500 for design and permitting.
“The bridge is so compromised … we’re thinking of removing it in advance,” Public Works Director Larry Roberts said, according to the Westport Journal.
What the numbers mean for owners
The town’s 2021 hazard mitigation plan counted 213 repetitive-loss properties in Westport, 187 of them in the 1 percent annual chance flood zone. Roughly 3,000 Westport properties lie in mapped flood zones, according to a 2023 Westport Journal report. The plan identifies Saugatuck Shores, Canal Road, Compo and Hale Court as flood-prone coastal areas, along with stream corridors including Muddy Brook, Dead Man Brook and the Aspetuck River.
Two developments this fall will matter at closing tables. FEMA’s revised flood maps for the Saugatuck River watershed are expected to be adopted this fall, and Connecticut’s revised property condition disclosure form, in use since July 2025, now asks sellers about floodplain status, flood claims, disaster aid and water penetration. Westport participates in FEMA’s Community Rating System at Class 8, which gives policyholders a 10 percent discount on National Flood Insurance Program premiums.
Restoring a beach does not change a flood map, and the forum did not suggest otherwise. What a wider beach can do is absorb wave energy before it reaches the parking lots, pavilions and roads behind it. For a buyer, the practical steps are in our flood zone field guide.
Sources
- Westport Journal, Parks forum on $14 to $54 million beach restoration, Oct. 2, 2026
- Westport Journal, Westporters report flood damage, Sept. 14, 2026
- Westport Journal, Replacing Jesup Road bridge is expedited, but, Sept. 23, 2026
- 06880, Coverage of the Sept. 13, 2026 flood, September 2026
- WestCOG, Hazard Mitigation Plan, Westport annex, January 2021
- Westport Journal, Town inks pact to stem tide of flood insurance costs, Jan. 15, 2023
- Town of Westport, Floodplain and flood protection information, accessed Oct. 2026
