Avalon Beaches

Sand ho! Avalon begins work to replenish eroded beaches
By BRIAN IANIERI Staff Writer, (609) 463-6713
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Tuesday, March 7, 2006
Updated: Tuesday, March 7, 2006

AVALON — The ocean holds many treasures, including the better part of some of Avalon's beaches.

Avalon has been stockpiling sand on beaches between 18th and 26th streets.

Avalon officials also expect a dredging operation to start within two weeks as part of an effort to restore severely eroded beaches in the borough's northern end. In many places there, beach access is closed.

Trucks are moving 60,000 cubic yards of sand from the southern end of the borough and stockpiling it between 18th and 26th streets, where it is needed, said engineer Tom Thornton of the firm Hatch Mott MacDonald.

About 2,000 to 2,500 cubic yards are being moved per day, Thornton said.

Back passing sand is the first — and smallest — beach replenishment that will take place this month.

The dredging will provide about six times more sand than the back passing.

“Once they start, it should only take two or three weeks to finish,” Thornton said of the dredging.

Joan Hunter, director of the Avalon Chamber of Commerce, said the condition of the beach is of no small concern to business owners.

If not remedied, it could discourage vacationers, a prospect not overlooked in a summer economy such as Avalon's.

“Everybody in the borough is aware (that) if we don't have beaches, it's going to hurt businesses. It's going to hurt everything,” Hunter said.

“The borough was working on (the issue) all along, which we were aware of,” she said.

Until last month, borough officials were unsure whether they could find a dredging company to take the project. They had considered back-up plans, including trucking in sand from off the island, if a dredge was unavailable before the summer.

Avalon eventually entered into a $2.8 million contract with dredging company Weeks Marine to pump 350,000 cubic yards of sand between Ninth and 18th streets.

“I've known for a long time that the availability of dredges was going to get tight because of the Gulf Coast,” said Avalon Public Works Director Harry deButts.

Luckily, a dredging company that happened to be working on a project in Brigantine became available, deButts said.

“Having the ability to tie into the Weeks dredge coming out of Brigantine was a godsend to us,” he said.

As Avalon waited to find out whether they could hire a dredging company, officials formulated back-up plans, which deButts said could have adequately stocked the beaches but is not as efficient and would cost more per cubic yard.

While the uncertainty of a dredging project lingered, the Chamber of Commerce fielded questions about the beaches.

“I can't tell you how many phone calls we get here asking what's happening with the beach replenishment,” Hunter said.

Storms damaged beaches in the fall last year and caused Avalon to cut off beach access at many locations in the northern end.

Before Memorial Day last year, a late spring storm also damaged portions of the beach, and sections of the beaches were closed as well.

To e-mail Brian Ianieri at The Press:
BIanieri@pressofac.com