" alt="LBI Waterfront Real Estate" />Beach Replenishment Almost Complete in Holgate, Starting Soon in North Beach
Beach replenishment in Holgate, Long Beach Township’s southernmost section, is on track to reach completion later this week. Currently, the dredges Liberty Island and Dodge Islandare on the job in that area.
A third dredge, the Padre Island, left for the shipyard last week for repairs after its pump room partially flooded.
According to township officials, the exact finish date for Holgate is dependent on whether the project sponsors are able to secure permission from the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge to replenish a bit south of the wooden jetty, where a plover had been located – preventing any work nearby – but has since departed.
When the work in Holgate is complete, the Liberty Island will move to the North Beach section of the township, where a pipe landing has been made near Pickering Lane. Contractor Great Lakes Dock and Dredge Co. plans to head south, toward Surf City, for a few weeks, then switch direction to work north to the border of Harvey Cedars.
For the duration of the project in North Beach, the oceanside tennis courts in that area will remain open, but the adjacent parking area is closed while Great Lakes moves equipment via that access point.
The Dodge Island will leave for maintenance following the completion of work in Holgate. When the Dodge Island and Padre Island return to Long Beach Island, both will pump for restoration in the Loveladies segment of the township.
Township Mayor Joseph Mancini explained that, in accordance with the storm damage reduction project requirements, the municipality is required to provide 20 additional parking spots in both Loveladies and North Beach. In 2014, the township acquired the property located at 12A Long Beach Blvd. in Loveladies – a teardown – to utilize as a parking area, and recently purchased 1084A in North Beach for the same purpose.
The property acquisitions ensure that the municipality does not have to create a parking area along the median of the Boulevard in Loveladies and North Beach, which was an earlier consideration. “We’re all good now, so we don’t have to rip up the median, which would have been a public safety nightmare,” said Mancini.
According to Steve Rochette, press officer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the federal project sponsor, a town in receipt of the replenishment project must also provide public access to the beach every half mile. “The public access has to be completed by the time the project is completed and turned over to the non-federal sponsor,” which is the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, Rochette pointed out.
Mancini said the township is in the process of obtaining perpendicular easements for beach access in both Loveladies and North Beach in order to meet this additional requirement. In all other sections of the municipality, the beaches are accessible from each street.
This fall and winter, Great Lakes will repump in certain areas of the project – Ship Bottom and parts of Long Beach Township – that were replenished last year as part of this contract but were subsequently damaged by storms. The work is expected to commence in mid-September and should be completed by January, said Rochette.
As explained on the project website, nap.usace.army.mil, which is updated regularly as the project moves forward, “The current construction is funded entirely by the federal government through the 2013 Disaster Relief Appropriations Act (PL113-2), commonly known as the Hurricane Sandy Relief Bill. Following the completion of initial construction, the project is eligible for continued periodic nourishment.”
— Juliet Kaszas-Hoch
