NWW -SeaWall

Big fix begins for North Wildwood seawall

By TRUDI GILFILLIAN Staff Writer, (609) 463-6716, E-Mail/Press of Atlantic City

NORTH WILDWOOD - Work to rebuild the city's aging seawall has begun, but could take as long as 21/2 years to complete, said U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project manager Keith Watson.

"It's a very tough area to work in. Deep water and large rocks. And safety is the priority. We'd rather be slow and safe," Watson said Thursday.

The $12.2 million project involves the reconstruction of the entire 8,800-foot-long seawall, which stretches across the northern end of the city from the Atlantic Ocean back to the Anglesea section of the city at Aqua Beach.

The cost is being split, with the federal government paying for 65 percent and the state Department of Environmental Protection, or DEP, and the city picking up the rest of the tab. Agate Construction Co. of Dennis Township won the contract last fall.

Watson said the construction has been divided into three phases with the first phase starting in the center of the seawall just south of Anglesea through the area around Olde New Jersey Avenue and Spruce Avenue.

The next phase will move toward the ocean at John F. Kennedy Boulevard and Second Avenue, and the last phase will go back into the Hereford Inlet at Anglesea.

"The long-term goal is to reduce storm damage to the community," Watson explained as he went through the stages of the project.

The seawall was started in the 1930s with a number of rehabilitation projects taking place since then. The last one was done sometime in the 1980s, Watson said.

"(The seawall) is in great disrepair. The area along (St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church) to New York Avenue is actually falling away," Watson said.

The substantial repairs to come will make use of a geotextile fabric under layer, which will hold the rocks that make up the wall. In some spots, work will extend 10 feet below the surface while other areas will require repairs as far down as 40 to 50 feet due to erosion along the seawall.

The work will be done almost entirely from the water, but staging areas will be set up on land and the construction will take place only during the city's regular construction hours. According to the City Clerk's Office, construction in the city is permitted between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. except Sundays when no construction work is allowed.

While Watson said there will be typical construction noise, Army Corps spokesman Merv Brokke said the partnership with the state and city means all three are trying to avoid as much construction noise as possible by working within the rules of the city.

City Administrator Ray Townsend said residents who want to learn more about the seawall project can attend a public meeting at 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 13, at the city's Recreation Center. Representatives from the Army Corps, the DEP and Agate Construction are expected to attend.

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