Politics & Government
Long Branch Mayor Says City is ‘Ready to Go’ For Beach Replenishment
All easements required for work to start have been secured.
By Christopher Sheldon
Long Branch Mayor Adam Schneider said this week that the all the easements the Army Corps of Engineers needs to begin its beach replenishment project in Long Branch have been secured.
“We’re ready to go,” Schneider said.
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Army Corps of Engineers New York District Commander Col. Paul E. Owen said during a press conference last week that a bid for the work would be awarded in mid-August.
A potential problem is securing the easement arose this month as the there were property owners in North Long Branch, West End and Pier Village that had not signed over the easements.
Schneider said the easements have been secured from the West End and Pier Village property owners and that the work will not be done on the North Long Branch property owners beachfront. He said he was told this week that Army Corps of Engineers does not need easements from the property owners because their elevations are sufficient today.
The city had prepared to introduce an ordinance for the July 23 Long Branch Council to take the North Long Branch property through the use of eminent domain, but chose to table it. The residents of the properties, including the Sea Dunes condominiums, spoke during the meeting and said they were still negotiating with the Army Corps of Engineers about the easements.
US Army Corps of Engineers Regional Manager Jenifer Thalhauser said last week that the negotiations with the North Long Branch property owners are ongoing but that the easements are not needed for the current beach replenishment project
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"Talks are ongoing with some of the properties, but we have everything for the current contract so things are going well," Thalhauser said. "Those easements are for future (beach) management projects. This current contract doesn't require (those properties)."
Schneider said the city will still need the property owners to grant the easements in the future.
“We will need the easements in the future but we don’t need them now," Schneider said.
He said the beach replenishment project is essential for the city because it has to be completed before any work on the city's Hurricane Sandy-damaged bluff or boardwalk can begin. He said the city was in a position to "whatever needs to be done to make sure the city gets sand replenishment."
“We were real concerned that we weren’t ready and wouldn’t end up ready,” Schneider said. “The last thing we wanted to hear was that were more things that needed to get done.”
Schneider said he is a proponent of beach replenishment and said it will help protect Long Branch's oceanfront and inland properties from future storm damage.
To read more about the city's upcoming beach replenishment project, click here.
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