The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) announced today that it has awarded a $1,045,400 Coastal Impact Assistance Program (CIAP) grant to the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources (MDMR). The grant will provide funding for the acquisition of the Charnley-Norwood Property, a parcel of waterfront land in Ocean Springs, Miss. The proposal will include the restoration of an historic century-old structure on the property, as well as the development of a future public land use plan to restore the waterfront parcel to a community green space and public museum.
Created by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, CIAP provides funding to the six Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) oil and gas producing states to conserve and protect the coastal environment. CIAP is an ongoing program with grant funding that is allocated based on the
offshore energy revenues collected by the United States.
“CIAP provides valuable, ongoing support to states and their coastal communities,” said BOEMRE Director Michael R. Bromwich. “These grants enable us to partner with Mississippi and its coastal counties to fund vital restoration, development and public use initiatives that will help preserve our historic coastal landmarks and natural green space areas for many years to come.”
The grant will fund the proposed acquisition of the Charnley-Norwood Property, located in the city of Ocean Springs on East Beach Drive in Jackson County. The MDMR seeks to place a restrictive covenant on the property, and acquire the parcel for the planned restoration of the site as a historical landmark and nature area. A management and restoration plan will be prepared as part of the project, which will include the renovation of the area to a waterfront community green space. In addition, the parcel’s existing structure, built in 1897 as a single family residence, will be restored and opened to the general public as a museum.
CIAP received $250 million in appropriated funds for each of the Fiscal Years 2007-2010, to be disbursed to six eligible OCS oil and gas producing states: Mississippi, Alabama, Alaska, California, Louisiana and Texas.