Posted on January 31, 2017
By Claire Lowe, pressof AtlanticCity.com
Back-bay dredging will go forward, but the city is still working to figure out when and how.
In a public letter posted on the city website earlier this month, Mayor Jay Gillian said the city is dropping a plan to use property on Shelter Road to de-water dredge material, citing the financial and logistical impact of relocating Public Works operations.
City Public Information Officer Doug Bergen said ACT Engineers, a firm hired by the city in 2015 to develop long-term back bay dredging plans, is working with state and federal regulators “on a number of different options for alternative disposal methods.”
He said that may include wetlands restoration using thin-layer disposal or alternative sites for dewatering.
“The city also will continue to use the CDF under the Ninth Street bridge to complete mechanical dredging projects at the north end of the island,” Bergen said.
Gillian initially presented the Shelter Road idea at a weekend meeting in December, where he was met with opposition from nearby residents.
Gillian said he appreciated the feedback, both negative and positive, but the decision was based on practicality.
According to ACT Engineers, a lawsuit had delayed progress in readying another dredge material disposal facility, threatening the viability of a 2017 dredging program.
The engineers proposed using Shelter Road, home to the city’s recycling facility, Humane Society and several athletic fields, to de-water the dredged material before it is trucked out of the city to another location.
“ACT Engineers continues to pursue an array of options for de-watering and transferring dredged material, and the emptying of Site 83 (near Roosevelt Boulevard) by truck continues to make good progress,” Gillian said.
Bergen said as of mid-January, trucks had hauled about 31,500 cubic yards of material out of Site 83.
“Mount Construction Co. has a contract to remove 150,000 to 170,000 cubic yards,” Bergen said.
He said ACT plans another public meeting on dredging before the state permitted dredging season begins July 1.
“As you all know by now, the dredging of our lagoons and back bays is not a simple problem to solve. But I remain committed to getting it done as quickly and efficiently as possible,” Gillian wrote.
ACT Engineers estimate 900,000 cubic yards would need to be removed to bring all the city’s lagoons and channels to a navigable depth. The city pledged $20 million toward back bay and lagoon dredging in the 2016-20 capital plan.
In 2017, the city plans to dredge the areas near the Nor’Easter condos at Seventh Street, Bay Club condos at Fourth Street and Bay Bridge condos at Ninth Street, using the Route 52 disposal site.
The city had planned to send dredge materials from Carnival/Venetian bayous, South Harbor and Bluefish/Clubhouse lagoons to Site 83.
Source: Cape May County
