Posted on March 13, 2023
The beach renourishment project is facing a delay, as a few municipalities have yet to sign a required agreement with the federal and state government, Lavallette Mayor Walter LaCicero told the borough council Monday.
The intergovernmental agreement between the 11 towns, the state of New Jersey, Ocean County and the federal government must be completed to initiate the bidding process, which would specify the costs of equipment, materials, and labor, as well as the project description and schedule.
“The county contribution and the state contribution are in the hands of the federal government,” the mayor said. “Feds have their money, they have the state money, but they need the county money because they needed the towns to sign the agreement.”
Neighboring Seaside Park, is one of the towns yet to sign, Mayor LaCicero said.
“Their dunes have been badly damaged by the construction of new ones,” he said. “So Seaside Park wanted to be sure that the damage would be compensated, would be taken care of, which was outside the scope of the standard agreement that the federal government wanted to sign.”
The mayor expressed confidence, however, that the issues raised by the Seaside Park and several other municipalities would be worked out.
Last January, the Ocean County stepped in to pick up the remaining $7.88 million cost for the beach re-nourishment, relieving the towns to use their own budget for the project expenditures. The remaining $60 million is to be shared between the Army Corps of Engineers and New Jersey.
