Weddings planned this weekend at the Shell could be shifted due to beach replenishment

Photo by Jack Reynolds
The replenishment project quickly approaches
the beach in front of The Sea Shell.

Replenishment in Beach Haven is moving along quickly. But if the beachfill activity near The Sea Shell Resort and Beach Club on Centre Street doesn’t quiet down by this weekend, the two weddings planned for the Shell’s beachfront area may be held elsewhere on the property, said owner Tom Hughes.

“I think (the replenishment) is going to be right in front of us,” he stated. “The couples are all aware of it. Everybody for the last three years has been aware. Whether or not they’re going to continue to have their wedding here (at the beachfront) or they’re going to go to an alternate site, which they already have picked out, is going to be a last-minute decision.”

Contractor Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co. began to push sand and build up the dune along the Centre Street beach earlier this week. Hughes expects the couples to make a decision about which location they’re choosing by Thursday or Friday.

“If they’re just doing the dune and they’re not necessarily working with all the equipment, the couples might decide to have it here. But if they’ve got all this ‘Stars Wars’ equipment that they have down there, (the couples) might choose to move it,” he said. “We just don’t know how fast they’re going to go. Right now they’re moving very, very fast, but they could have something break down or they could have something unforeseen happen. So we’re at their mercy.”

Replenishment started at both ends of the town about a month ago and will continue to progress inward, weather permitting, said Mayor Nancy Taggart Davis. Although she said she “isn’t thrilled about beach replenishment,” she believes it’s the best thing to do for the safety of the residents.

“They’re absolutely doing beach replenishment in front of The Sea Shell,” Taggart Davis stated. “It is not stopping or taking a break in front of there. It is going as scheduled; I can guarantee you that. There’s no chance that there’s just going to be a big opening there in the dune.

“Every single person in Beach Haven, including Tom Hughes, has signed their easement. We have no holdouts, which is not true of other places. That’s why they’re doing Beach Haven right now,” she added.

Because the new lifeguard station at Centre Street was built out farther onto the beach two years ago, Hughes noted, the new dune will be built right in front of the Shell’s approved recreation area, where weddings are often held.

“They’re doing everything in front of The Sea Shell that they’re doing everyplace else,” he said. “We’re going to lose our view, and we’re going to have a giant beach. The beautiful ocean, we’re not going to see that anymore. But it is what it is. We need it.”

— Kelley Anne Essinger

This article was published in The SandPaper.