STRATHMERE — Erosion has gotten so bad in the Strathmere section of Upper Township that a fourth beach access point in the north end has been closed to the public.
Engineer Paul Dietrich said the township started closing the beach access points with Seaview Avenue in spring 2022 and closed Seacliff and Winthrop avenues over the summer.
Now the four northernmost beaches, from Seaview Avenue to Williams Avenue, are inaccessible to pedestrian traffic and likely to remain so into the summer season.
“The erosion is only going to probably get worse as we have storms. Most of the beach in Strathmere, there is not a lot of dry beach at high tide, so I do anticipate it is going to get worse before it gets better,” Dietrich told Township Committee on Jan. 23.
Dietrich said the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and state Department of Environmental Protection have been inspecting and assessing conditions before putting the next beach replenishment project out to bid. He said a contract is expected in early April and work to commence in late June and through July.
“The early part of the summer season, we are going to have limited beach access,” Dietrich said. “We are going to be letting residents know the first four blocks, that you are going to have to get yourself further down the beach in the south.”
Beach replenishment will also close off beaches to the public during the summer while the work takes place.
Dietrich said the Public Works Department will continue to monitor the situation, “especially before weekends as we get to better weather.”
Committeeman Curtis Corson said the erosion may prevent vehicles from accessing the beach.
“We are going to have very cognizant; that’s our emergency access point,” Corson said.
Dietrich said there is a 2- to 3-foot scarp on the beach.
“There’s going to be a point where we cannot grade that back to access it,” Deitrich said.
“And where are they going to go? Through the dunes,” Corson said.
“Or there is going to be water at high tide,” Deitrich said.
He said there may be a time when the township will have to close the vehicle access at Williams Avenue. If that happens, he said, emergency vehicles would have to access the beach at Commonwealth and Hawthorne avenues, otherwise known as 1495 Commonwealth Ave.
Dietrich said the township had to close the handicapped access at Williams Avenue, where the Upper Township Beach Patrol headquarters is located.
Deputy Mayor Kim Hayes said the township may have to revise its handicapped access since only one will be available.
Corson said the number of handicapped access points required is based on the overall number, meaning one access point may be sufficient with four beaches closed.
Dietrich also reported that the township is set to receive an additional $45,000 to $55,000 grant from the DEP to continue its resiliency planning report.
Strathmere is part of the southern Ocean City and Sea Isle City beach replenishment project.
According to the Army Corps website, the Great Egg Harbor Inlet to Townsends Inlet project first received funding in 2013 when Congress enacted the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act following Hurricane Sandy.
In November 2014, the Army Corps awarded a $57.6 million contract to the Great Lakes Dredge and Dock Co. to complete the coastal storm damage reduction project from the southern end of Ocean City to Strathmere and Sea Isle.
The project, which entailed the construction of a dune and beach is a joint effort of the Army Corps’ Philadelphia District and the DEP. The initial construction project was completed in spring 2016. The project is eligible for periodic nourishment on a five-year cycle pending adequate funding.
Dietrich said the Strathmere last got sand in fall 2019 and it took one to two months to complete.
By CRAIG D. SCHENCK/Sentinel staff
