Construction is expected to start June 10 in Ventnor. The dredging, beach fill and dune build will take 35 days to complete. Margate is after that, followed by Longport.
The Ventnor project will start and proceed south to north, starting at Fredericksburg and moving toward Jackson.
The lower half of Ventnor from Fredericksburg to Buffalo will see construction of a new, man-made dune.
Ventnor beaches from Buffalo to Jackson Ave will get additional tonnage of sand to build upon the existing, already substantial dune system. Much of the Ventnor dune system is already wider and taller than originally planned years ago. Many portions of Ventnor dunes have naturally grown higher by 1-2 feet over the years.
Even though sections of Ventnor’s beach features overly wide / high dunes, it looks like the DEP & the State of NJ will pump even more sand in these areas in order to max out the financial appropriations. Geez. If true, does anybody see a problem with that?
The pipe providing dredge sand for the Downbeach project will come ashore at Fredericksburg Ave. The massive steel pipe will feed sand up the beach for the entirety of the project. Wow. That should be a real treat trying to get over it. Perfect for summer pics too.
The entire beach will not be disrupted. Guards will also be present to make sure you keep back….even further from the fenced off area.
Ventnor dune building and beach replenishment will be done 1,000 ft. at a time, which is at least 2 blocks at a time. But really, you’ll want to stay far away from that racket.
The rest of Ventnor beach will remain accessible while work proceeds. A gravel or sand path will provide access to the beach from the boardwalk and will continue as flat as possible over dunes.
Bulldozers, back-hoes, piping and other heavy equipment will be parked & stored between the Volleyball courts and Suffolk Avenue while not in use.
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Our latest thoughts…..
Most have focused on Margate’s valiant but unsuccessful attempt to stop questionable dune building along the lower portion of Absecon Island. But, from our perspective, it’s Ventnor that’ll take the bigger hit from the mandated dune dump. The valuable, unique and tourism-friendly Ventnor Boardwalk will no longer have views of the beach & ocean.
The Ventnor Boardwalk is one of the few, TOP, unique attractions about Ventnor. In a few weeks, a parade of heavy equipment will set up shop on our Downbeach Shores. While we all hate the poorly timed shut downs of sections of Margate / Ventnor beaches…. the longer lasting pain is the loss of views from the Boardwalk.
By mid July, you’ll no longer be able to sit on a bench and watch the surf. One of Ventnor’s few unique attractions, the Boardwalk, will be substantially crippled by dopey dune building. That is not an exaggeration.
FACT: it totally sucks to walk on the Atlantic City Boardwalk.You can’t see the beach or water. But, you can stroll past crappy t-shirt shops, massage parlors, casino entrances & mountains of sand. You can thank the State of NJ & the casinos for that catastrophe.
Did the local newspapers & radio stations cover these issues appropriately? NO. Only the recently passed Pinky fought against the folly of high dunes. Once again, the local media duped us all.
This is your last chance Ventnor, and those in Margate that like to walk the Ventnor boards….
The upcoming dune build in Margate & Ventnor, right in the middle of the summer….is just one more example of our local elected officials being virtually invisible in this situation. But they love spending taxpayer dollars on foolish projects like dune building. Shame on you Congressman LoBiondo. As a Ventnor resident…you saddled up with the wrong side. All you cared about was spending that Hurricane Sandy relief money. Whether we needed it or not. Why didn’t you target those dollars towards the back bays?
The DEP says dunes will save lives & property. Baloney. No one died from a crashing wave. And beach front property owned by 2nd homeowners are NOT the responsibility of FEMA. The problem is back bay surge.
And you just wanna burn off that Hurricane Sandy cash.
WILDWOOD being forced to take dunes? Yup. Wildwood, a town with 1,000 ft beaches… is being forced to take MORE DUNES & beach work.
Only in New Jersey.
DownbeachBUZZ is NOT related to the Press of Atlantic City.
I read this article to get an update on facts around the dune project. Half of the article is just more of your negative opinions about the dunes project. Of course, you’re entitled to your opinion, but, Seriously, have you ever been on the Ventnor Boardwalk? I walk, run, or ride there every day, and I can see the ocean and the beach while walking even on the 78% of the Ventnor Boardwalk that has had dunes for many years. And if you think there’s no danger from the ocean in a hurricane, tell that to the towns up north that got the brunt of the storm winds and surge coming from the ocean, and were devastated. Downbeach was just lucky because of the track of the storm. And the wonderful Margate bulkhead wasn’t all that effective even with Sandy’s fortunate track. Ask the people at the Margate high rises like 9600 about the cost of replacing their first floors after Sandy. That damage and the mountains of sand on Atlantic Ave did not come from the Bay. Given your comments, I think you should stop whining about the dunes, and perhaps lobby for Margate to continue the boardwalk south from Fredericksburg to Longport. That would be a wonderful addition to Downbeach. By the way, it is now June 14th, and the dredging and pumping hasn’t started. I heard a rumor it will be postponed indefinitely because the ship doing the dredging needed repairs and was headed back to Newport News. Yay!! A SUMMER REPRIEVE. Could you verify?