As many of you know the most northern part of the Colonial Beach Boardwalk is going downhill fast which has caused a new sense of urgency especially from the residents living closest to the danger. At our July meeting Council was told recent investigations led staff to believe the Boardwalk may not belong to the town. This brief prompted council to direct the Town Manager to arrange a meeting with the residents. The meeting was held 7pm at COBE Workspace with over 20 people in attendance. Below are my notes from the North Beach Boardwalk meeting.
Town manager said we are trying to put the pieces together regarding Boardwalk ownership and project status.
Town is in the process of applying for grant $3.3M is earmarked.
We don’t know how competitive Grant is.
Deadline, November 9.
Corps of Engineers (COE) project stopped and the Town manager and mayor are not sure why.
Residents are an integral piece of putting puzzle together.
Mayor said the grant is not really an earmark, it’s only an estimate.
Question as to whether Naval Base has any responsibility or resources.
Mayor stated she has been involved in this project for years, including multiple discussions with congressmen and senators.
There was a question about the COE project and what appeared to be clearly defined phases. Last we knew was, it was in the scoping phase and next would be design phase.
Town manager and mayor don’t know why Corp of Engineer stopped.
Town manager has not been able to get a COE project contact since she’s been here over a year and a half.
Resident said what is the actual question regarding ownership?
One resident recently got a survey done showing town ownership.
A couple of residents spoke up and stated that according to surveys their property line stopped at the boardwalk.
It was suggested that any documents homeowners have should be sent to the town manager, so staff could look over.
A resident asked when did the COE project stop? The town manager did not know. She stated she has not talked to anybody from COE.
Discussion about the RAFT study and various studies done on the boardwalk over the years.
Concern raised over the fire plans for houses that do not have road frontage.
Question as to whether the COE will continue the project if it’s not owned by the town.
Someone from the American Legion stated that they believe they own all the way to the water.
Mayor suggested that ownership determination was not necessary to continue to pursue corrective actions.
Concerns raised over drainage and other infrastructure issues on the boardwalk property.
A resident asked if the town was pursuing any sort of repairs for the boardwalk and the mayor answered, I think we need to resolve the breakwater issue first.
I suggested that the town do an official survey so we can make the determination of who owns what. The answer was that’s why we are gathering information from the residents . The concern I have is there will always be questions until we have an official determination.
A resident suggested that we are just spinning our wheels.
Resident said if grant doesn’t work out what is Plan B? Answer was COE follow up.
Resident stated they’ve been emailing and contacting the town for 4 years with no responses.
One resident stated that after the jetties were built by the American Legion, it started stripping away the beach north of them.
It was suggested that the town attorney would draft a letter for all homeowners to sign granting easement/ access for any future repairs.
A resident asked about the resiliency plan and any correlation between north beach.
It was suggested something needs to be done about the dangers at the boardwalk because all the broken concrete i.e. warning signs or something.
Councilman David Williams
Please email or call with questions or comments:
540-604-4335
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