The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has obtained all of North Beach’s easements for beach replenishment, which means the project will move forward in Surf City in mid-June, weather permitting, borough Councilman Peter Hartney announced at the Surf City Council’s monthly meeting on Wednesday, May 11.
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| Photo by Ryan Morrill The beach entrance at 21st Street, where there's a steep dune drop-off, is blocked off for safety purposes. |
The town’s beaches were partially replenished during the original project in 2006. The blocks between 12th and 22nd streets were also repaired after the nor’easter in 2009. After Superstorm Sandy, the whole portion was restored. The borough is currently waiting for the remaining area, from 22nd to 25th streets, to be completed.
As of now, Hartney said, the dunes between 21st and 13th streets, which were severely damaged by Winter Storm Jonas in January, will not be repaired during the replenishment. But contractor Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co. will be tapering the beach at 21st and 20th streets where there’s a big hole, he noted. To make the beaches accessible in time for the opening of the beach on June 18, the town will be utilizing its shared-services agreement with Ocean County to have those dunes repaired in the beginning of June. Hartney said officials are still determining whether they will be able to move the sand on the beach and/or cut down the dune entrance, or whether they’ll have to truck in the sand.
Local officials had hoped the Army Corps would take care of the repairs and foot the bill, but assistance through the Federal Control and Coastal Emergency Act won’t be available until sometime next year.
“Basically what the Army Corps is going to do is build a new beach next to a damaged beach, come back in a year after all the paperwork is done for the funding and redo it,” Hartney said. “We’re going to have to spend a couple million dollars waiting for them to come back and repair it, even though they’re here.”
The town is in the process of applying for funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which has offered reimbursement through its Public Assistance grant program to state and local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations for emergency work and the repair or replacement of eligible public facilities damaged by Jonas. But Hartney expects the town will have to pay for the work itself since it had to fund similar repairs to another section of the beach following the nor’easter in 2009 that was later rebuilt by the Army Corps.
Mike Feeney, a resident of 20th Street for 58 years, told council members that he and many of his neighbors, who have renters that pay thousands of dollars to stay at their houses during the summer, are concerned about whether or not they’ll be able to use the beaches. But Hartney and Mayor Francis Hodgson assured him that the beaches will be open and accessible in time for the summer season.
Hartney noted that Harvey Cedars and some parts of Long Beach Township are in the same predicament.
“I’m going to continue working on advocating with our local officials,” Hartney stated. “The dredge is here; the dredge is offshore. They’re pumping sand. So it’s worth reaching out to the federal officials to see if they can talk some common sense into the Army Corps. There’s always hope.”
At the close of business on May 10, Hartney announced, there were 3,329 seasonal beach badges sold at the preseason price of $25, for a total of $83,225. Badges sold at the booth, which is open until 4:30 p.m. seven days a week, accounted for 2,591 badges, or $64,775. Mail-in orders accounted for 738 badges, or $18,450.
“In comparison to 2015, when the month of May was bright and sunny all month long, compared to the two weeks of rain we’ve had, we’ve sold 1,301 badges less than last year at this time, which is an offset of $32,525 less in badges,” Hartney said. “The rain has an impact. We pray for the sun.”
Mail-in orders for the preseason price can be sent in until May 31, he noted, adding that dogs are no longer allowed on the beach until Oct. 1. Beach buggies will also no longer be allowed on the beach between May 28 and Sept. 17.
Due to safety and liability as well as noise concerns, council denied two public requests for the set-up of tents and tables as well as a DJ on the beach for wedding ceremonies in the off-season.
Lifeguard try-outs for this summer will be held at St. Francis Community Center in Brant Beach on Sundays, May 22 and 29, noted Councilman James Russell, who also encouraged the public to attend the borough’s Memorial Day service at Veterans Memorial Park on Saturday, May 28, at 11 a.m.
The fourth annual Get LBI Running 5K to benefit the local fire company will take place on Saturday, May 21, beginning at 9 a.m. Registration is still available, stated Hartney, who is also president of the fire company. Those who wish to walk the event are welcome to join.
Department members will also be cleaning the street ends along the bay, from 23rd to 18th streets, on June 3 during the annual Barnegat Bay Blitz, which is sponsored by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Twenty sixth-graders and four staff members from Stafford schools will be joining them.
Councilwoman Jackie Siciliano noted that the reinforcement of the bulkhead at Fifth Street at the bay, which is naturally a low-lying area that has created flooding issues for residents in that region, has been completed by the public works department. The department has also demolished and poured fresh sidewalks and curbing between 13th and 14th streets, next to the public works yard.
Due to Jonas, which brought in a lot of water and pushed around stones and other debris, street sweeping for all of the borough’s roads is being scheduled to be completed by the county in the near future, Siciliano said.
She also mentioned that local officials met with county engineers regarding a traffic pattern change going into North Beach at the end of Surf City, which she said was decided against after officials expressed safety concerns.
Councilman William Hodgson noted that a local resident donated three bicycle helmets to the police department. He also stated that $7,200 in property was stolen in April. After the meeting, Police Chief William Collins said an investigation for the stolen jewelry is ongoing.
Council passed a resolution authorizing approximately $5,000 for the installation for water and sewer laterals at North Second Street and the ocean, to be performed by Kevin J. Schubiger Plumbing and Heating.
Council adopted ordinance amendments for zoning filing fees and boat ramp and parking lot fees, as well to disallow the obstruction of a water meter pit, water turn-on/turn-off pit and/or any connecting lines and pipes.
An ordinance authorizing the reconstruction and resurfacing of various streets in the borough and appropriating $300,000 and providing for the issuance of $285,000 in general improvement bonds or notes was approved on first reading.
The borough has received $2,322.97 from the county for the second half of last year’s recycling revenue, Councilman John Hadash announced.
Many members wore pink shirts in honor of Paint the Town Pink, a campaign that the town is participating in for the third year in a row that advocates for the detection of breast cancer through annual mammography.
David Pawlishak, who has been working for the borough for the past 35 years, announced that he would be retiring as the borough’s chief financial officer, which position he has held for the last 18 years.
“I’ve always been proud of my relationship with Surf City,” he said, choking up. “This governing body is to be commended. You could set an example for the other towns in New Jersey. You have a relatively stable tax rate. You have a healthy surplus. You have no bonded indebtedness. And you listen to your taxpayers, and you try to work with them. I think that’s wonderful.”
Each of the council members warmly thanked Pawlishak for his many years of service and openly welcomed Michael Gross of Manahawkin, who will be taking over as CFO starting June 1. He has 29 years of experience in municipal finance.
— Kelley Anne Essinger
This article was published in The SandPaper.
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