NORTH WILDWOOD — The November 2009 storm had a devastating effect on the beaches of North Wildwood.
It was only a few days before the completion of the 1.4 million cubic yard beach nourishment project that Mother Nature took back almost 500,000 cubic yards of sand from the north end (Second to Fourth avenues) and the south end (22nd to 26th avenues) of the City’s beach at the water’s edge.
Then, to add insult to injury, two sets of subsequent storms removed approximately another 100,000 cubic yards of sand.
The City has been working with the State of New Jersey and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to secure funding for the replacement of lost sand and other storm-related damages. Our applications are presently in Washington, D.C. awaiting approval and authorization.
In the meantime, the City has been working with the State (NJDEP, Bureau of Coastal Engineering) and Great Lakes Dredging and Dock Company (GLDD), the company who had almost completed the earlier beach nourishment project, to secure pricing and a schedule for a new dredging project to bring the City’s beach back to the original profile design.
All dredging projects are weather-driven–an unpredictable element. The City is hopeful that GLDD will have a dredge here in North Wildwood in May 2010.
Therefore, given the size of the storm damage project, we expect the sand pumping to be completed prior to the season, leaving us with only some crossover, fencing, and planting work to be completed.
Stone Harbor – Could the North Wildwood spouter tell us what kind of company he refers to that has already gotten tariff increases. Waiting for the reply spout!
