Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Both areas were damaged and flooded by Hurricane Sandy
City officials are hoping FEMA will them expedite the repair of Lake Takanassee and Manahassett Creek Park after both were damaged and flooded by Hurricane Sandy. Long Branch Police Sgt. Charles Shirley, who also works with the city office of emergency management, recently said repairing the area where Lake Takanassee was breached and is spilling out to the ocean is imperative. "We've been working with (Long Branch Department of Public Works Director Fred Migliaccio) on getting some material in there to at least protect it so that next time if we have another storm that comes in, such as a nor'easter," Shirley said. Shirley said in the past, houses on North Lake Drive and South Lake Drive, which border Lake Takanassee, were spared because …
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Lake waters now emptying into ocean
The latest rain storm to hit Long Branch has caused Lake Takanassee to overflow its banks and carve a new path to the ocean. The lake is now spilling onto the beach from two paths. One actually carved a path around the pipe that was originally the only way the lake water reached the ocean. The second path uncovered a wood retaining wall and is flowing over it and down to the beach. The two paths then merge and flow over the broken sea wall that was uncovered by Hurricane Sandy before heading out into the ocean.
Friday, December 28, 2012
City to test lake sediment to see if county dredging is feasible
The city is taking the necessary steps for the county to dredge Lake Takanassee in the near future. Long Branch Administrator Howard Woolley said the county dredges two lakes per year and is now interested in Lake Takanassee. "We did a study a while back and found it would cost us several million dollars to dredge it ourselves, but (Monmouth County Department of Public Works Director John) Tobia has offered to do it for us at very limited cost to the city," Woolley said during Thursday night's Long Branch Council meeting. He said the city's first task is to test the sediment at the bottom of the lake to see if it is clean and can be used by the county as cover for its landfill. "If it comes up clean, we've got a great deal, if it comes up …
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Historic building destroyed by hurricane
One of Long Branch's most historic structures did not survive Hurricane Sandy's wrath. The US Life Saving Station Boathouse located on the remains of Takanassee Beach Club on Ocean Avenue was destroyed by the powerful winds and flood waters of the hurricane. Long Branch Historical Association Trustee Beth Woolley said the destruction of the structure is a loss for the history of the area "It was a beautiful , totally unique, One of a Kind US Life Saving Station Boathouse designed by Victor Mendleheff and erected in 1903," Woolley said in an e-mail to Patch. "It along with the rest of the property have been severely neglected since the Peters sold it and much of it's land has been lost to erosion." All that remains of the building is …
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Event is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 10
A Long Branch resident and his friends are doing everything they can to help those who have been impacted by Hurricane Sandy. Ben Woolley, 30, has helped organize a walk/5K that will raise money and collect goods for Hurricane Sandy victims. "I know several people in Long Branch who lost everything, so it will be nice to do something to help them," Woolley said. "I've been wanting to do something like this ever since the fire in West End earlier this year." The event will be held at Lake Takanassee on Saturday, Nov. 10 with the walk at 10 a.m. and the 5K at 10:15 a.m. Woolley said the event is free, but that all participants must bring a donation with them. Donations can include blankets, new clothes, canned or non-perishable food, …
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Freeholder Thomas Arnone addresses Long Branch Council
Lake Takanassee in Long Branch is on the county's list of dredging projects, Monmouth County Freeholder Thomas Arnone said during Tuesday night's Long Branch Council meeting. Freeholder Arnone met with the council to explain the Grow Monmouth program which aims to brings more businesses to the county, but noted that the lake could be one of the next projects the county pursues. "I know we are having some early discussions on doing some dredging for you," Freeholder Arnone said. "I will tell you that right now we are dredging a lake in Colts Neck and will then be moving on to Spring Lake. Our goal is to put two (dredging) projects a year on the books for our public works, that's pretty much all we can handle because we only have a certain…
Friday, October 19, 2012
Vehicle occupants unhurt
The Long Branch Police pulled a car from the banks of Lake Takanassee after the vehicle apparently backed into it on Friday morning. The vehicle's occupants were removed and were not hurt and the blue sedan did not appear to be seriously damaged. Long Branch Police Capt. Jason Roebuck said there was a "domestic problem" between the occupants and that husband mistakenly drove into the lake bank. A tow truck tied a cable to car and was able to remove it from the water in about 10 minutes after the incident was reported. The incident occurred on Lake Drive, across from St. Michael's Church just before 9 a.m.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
City applying for Open Space, DOT grants to help fund project
The city is looking to improve passive and active recreation around Lake Takanassee by building pedestrian and bike paths around it. City engineer Gerald Freda gave a brief presentation of the project at Tuesday night's Long Branch Council meeting. Freda said the city is applying for a $250,000 Open Space grant to help pay for the project, which is estimated to cost $650,000. Freda said the city has also applied for a New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) grant to help pay for the costs, and said if those two grants are received, more than two-thirds of the total cost of the project would be paid. He said there are other grants the city could apply for to pay for the remainder of the project. Freda said there are DEP permits …
Friday, December 30, 2011
Council passes resolution supporting membership in watershed association
The Long Branch Council has chosen to support an environmental group that hopes to one day aid the city in dredging Lake Takanassee. The Whalepond Brook Watershed Association's goal is to improve the quality of local bodies of water in Long Branch, West Long Branch, Tinton Falls, Eatontown and Ocean Township and create a greenway from the source to the ocean. Volunteer Faith Teitelbaum Lake Takanassee is part of the watershed and is furthest downstream before the water empties into the Atlantic Ocean. The group has already held several cleanups in Eatontown and Long Branch, and Teitelbaum said the group is looking to gain support from towns. The Long Branch Council gave the group its support by passing a resolution supporting membership in…
Monday, June 6, 2011
Board adopts Environmental Resource Inventory at May meeting.
The Long Branch Planning Board has adopted the Environmental Resource Inventory (ERI) in an effort to continue the city's plan toward sustainability and green initiatives. The ERI is an inventory of the city’s natural and cultural resources and will enable the Environmental Commission to further the goals adopted in the city's 2009 Master Plan. The creation of the ERI was made possible by funding from the Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions (ANJEC) and the City of Long Branch, and was adopted at the planning board meeting on May 17. "The Environmental Resource Inventory is a living document that will serve as a road map for preservation, conservation and sustainability throughout the City of Long Branch," Long Branch …
Beth Woolley
8:55 am on Friday, January 18, 2013
I think that the work that needs to be done down at the lake is way beyond what the city can handle. The wooden dam that is holding that property together is over 130 years old and is visibly falling apart.The lake is now running north across the beach in a rippling stream into the ocean and would be so much fun to play in if it was summer. I have an old news article from the 1800's describing … more ›