Emergency Repairs

Sea Isle City to repair geotube to protect Landis Avenue from sea

By BRIAN IANIERI Staff Writer, (609) 463-6713
Press of Atlantic City
Published: Saturday, October 21, 2006

SEA ISLE CITY — The city on Friday authorized $95,000 for emergency repairs to its geotube — the sausage-shaped sandbag that lines its northern beaches to prevent erosion and keep waves from hitting the streets.
City Engineer Andrew Previti said storm damage badly ripped three sections of the artificial sand dune at Seventh, Eighth and Ninth streets last week.

Previti said he believes the waves carried a piece of timber or metal, puncturing the geotube's lining.

“So many things are out in the ocean either dumped from ships or pilings that break loose from different locations,” he said.

The city will replace 25-foot and 10-foot portions of the geotube, while other sections between First and 10th streets have smaller tears and can be sewn together, he said.

The geotube is the last line of defense between the Atlantic Ocean and Landis Avenue. Although designed to be covered by sand, the geotubes are exposed from the erosion. The geotubes were installed along a stretch of Landis Avenue in Sea Isle City in 1998, after a February storm caused $645,000 in damage to 3,900 feet of the road.
Mayor Leonard Desiderio called the latest repairs a Band-Aid for a larger problem — needed beach replenishment from Townsends Inlet to Great Egg Harbor.

“The ocean has not breached with this geotube, and it's done a remarkable job protecting Landis Avenue and the city in the north end,” Desiderio said.

Earlier this week, Desiderio met with Ocean City Mayor Sal Perillo and Upper Township Mayor Richard Palombo to talk about future appeals to federal lawmakers to push for beach-replenishment money.

A project that would include Sea Isle City, Strathmere and Ocean City could cost more than $50 million, Desiderio said. There is no funding in place yet.

Those towns are not alone when it comes to finding funding for beach replenishment.

In March, Avalon paid $2.8 million to pay for stocking beaches.

Avalon officials felt that, without the dredging, part of their town — as well as the beach, its main tourist attraction — would have been destroyed by the ocean.

Before this year, Avalon's last beach fill was in 2003, when it entered a 50-year partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Under that agreement, the federal government pays more than half the costs.

But this year, Avalon went it alone, concerned about severely eroded beaches and aware that a federal government project might be almost three years away.

Avalon Public Works Director Harry deButts said strong west winds have been helping restock beaches damaged by storms this fall.

However, Avalon's northern end will require some work in the spring, he said.

This may include backpassing (pushing the sand from one area to another) or perhaps another dredge project, deButts said.

A beach fill through the Army Corps of Engineers was supposed to be funded in 2007, but that has been delayed, he said.

It is now anticipated for late 2008 or early 2009, he said.

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