Project by Geethika Lakshmi T S, Junbo Chen, ZongPing Liu, Nicole Quah
Stewards of the Coast reimagines the Asbury Park-Belmar Beach shoreline, extending to the Naval Weapons Station Earle, as a climate-safe community led by veterans. The project responds to a fragmented landscape – upland defense terrains, a suburban estuary, and a littoral frontline – each intensifying regional flooding. Meanwhile, veterans have long defended this coast, and have the engineering, logistics, and management skills required to build resilience. Through veteran-led stewardship, we transform a land that stored weapons into one that heals people and places. Flood-prone creeks are transformed into hybrid marsh–parkland systems that connect protected forests to the Shark River and the Atlantic coast, while amphibious and fortified coastal infrastructures stabilize the boardwalk economy. Strategically located community hubs, inspired by military bunkers and within veteran-dense neighborhoods, anchor new civic life and stewardship networks. By mobilizing veterans as stewards, builders, and coordinators, the project demonstrates how incremental, place-based interventions can strengthen ecological systems, support local economies, and foster long-term community resilience across the Jersey Shore.
