As storm surges and damage mounts, Mayor Rosenello urges state officials to accelerate coastal protection project

Photo by Susan Greenspon

The remnants of Hurricane Ian continued to batter the Jersey Shore on Monday, with steady rain, high winds and treacherous flooding conditions in the Wildwoods.

North Wildwood has once again taken the brunt of Mother Nature's wrath, enduring severe beach erosion and damage to its protective dune system over the past few days.

Mayor Patrick Rosenello told the Philadelphia Inquirer that the nor'easter could be one of the worst in recent years by the time its over. 

The slow-moving storm is expected to continue through Tuesday and into Wednesday, with a Coastal Flood Warning until 9 pm Tuesday and other advisories in effect.

On Monday afternoon, Rosenello penned a public letter to state officials, pleading for a multi-million dollar dredging project to blast sand back onto the beach. He referenced the town's repeated efforts at beach replenishment while expressing frustration over stalled plans for a significant coastal protection project. 

Below is the text from Rosenello's Facebook post on the matter, followed by his letter to Shawn M. LaTourette, Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP)...

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Dear Friends:

The past few days have been extremely difficult for people from Florida, through the Carolinas and all the way to New Jersey. Anyone with a connection to the Jersey Shore looks at the devastation on the Florida Gulf Coast and has incredible empathy for the people there. It reminds us that such an event could occur again on the Jersey Shore.

As Mayor, making North Wildwood the most resilient town it can be is one of my greatest responsibilities. We ensure this resilience through projects such as seawalls, bulkheads, storm drainage systems and comprehensive engineered beach and dune systems.

Unfortunately, a major resilience project for North Wildwood that would provide significant protection against coastal storms has been stuck in a bureaucratic quagmire for over 9 years.

In 2013, Congress authorized and funded a project that would provide a comprehensive dune and beach system for North Wildwood. Since that time, however, the Army Corps of Engineers and the New Jersey DEP have failed to get the project moving.

The letter below to the Commissioner of the NJ DEP is our latest effort to break up this logjam and get this project moving. If you are inclined to support this effort, and you are a second homeowner or visitor, I would encourage you to contact your local New Jersey State Representative or your Federal Representatives no matter what state you live in. Our local State and Federal Representatives are fully on board with this project and have provided 100 percent support. The more support we can gather from other legislators, the better chance this project has of moving forward.

As we ride out the next few days of this storm, I encourage you to pay careful attention to weather forecasts and flood warnings and remain safe.

Sincerely,

Patrick Rosenello, Mayor

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