About 20 Jersey Shore homes are at risk of flooding after federal officials shot down a plan to temporarily reinforce a heavily eroded beach in Brigantine, Mayor Vince Sera told NJ Advance Media on Sunday.
Last week, officials in the Atlantic County town noted the loss of about 900 feet of beach at “The Cove,” where 4x4 vehicles often gather during the summer and outdoor movie showings are held.
Although the city initially said sandbags were strongly being considered as a short-term fix to the beach’s problems, that appears to be off the table, according to a letter Sera wrote Friday to homeowners.
“In a recent meeting with the Army Corps of Engineers, the city was notified that their previous short-term solution of placing sandbags along the Cove Beach along the south end jetty, will no longer be considered as an option,” Sera wrote, noting that federal officials had visited the site earlier in April.
MORE ON NJ BEACH EROSION
According to the letter, federal officials questioned whether the sandbags would hold up for more than a few days before being washed away. They also worried that “the thousands” of sandbags the job required would cause navigational issues in Absecon Inlet.
It was unclear if the erosion could impact other beach access or beach fees this summer. Sera did not comment further on the situation Sunday afternoon.
The mayor previously said police were considering limiting access on the beach this year — namely for vehicles — due to worries over overcrowding.
Brigantine is not the only town at the Jersey Shore confronted with erosion issues after an active winter storm season. Nor is it the only one considering limits on what residents can use at the beach this year.
Brick recently banned tents and canopies on its shore in order to save space for beachgoers. North Wildwood is looking to do the same this summer.
Sera said Friday he was working with federal officials and the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to establish another quick fix to the erosion issues in his town.
“The city is doing everything in its power to push the Army Corps and NJDEP to offer an immediate, short-term solution,” Sera wrote in his letter. “We have requested for both the Army Corps and NJDEP, to visit the area first-hand. We believe that an in-person visit to the site will demonstrate just how emergent this situation is.”
An Army Corps spokesman said last week in a statement federal officials were in contact with the city on different programs.
The mayor noted that a long-term solution could take as long as three to five years to be completed.
Army Corps sand replenishment projects can take years and sometimes longer, depending on the scope of the work and the size of the beach.
As for Brigantine, Sera said the city was working to ease permitting requirements so homeowners could build bulkheads to protect their properties “as fast as possible.”
Another long-term solution could come in the form of the Planning Assistance to States (PAS) program, which Brigantine has now requested to participate in. Under that program, the Army Corps would dispatch a specialized team to assess the erosion issues in specific areas and offer options to manage it.
