TRENTON
– Attorney General Stuart Rabner announced
today the filing of a lawsuit seeking state
access to private beachfront properties
in Surf City, Ocean County, to enable the
progress of a major coastal storm protection
project that will ultimately encompass all
of Long Beach Island.
Filed
today with the Chancery Division of the
New Jersey Superior Court in Ocean County,
the complaint contends that five beachfront
property owners who have refused to permit
state access to their properties are hindering
– and potentially jeopardizing future
funding for -- an important erosion control
and shore protection project along the Long
Beach Island coastline.
The
beach fortification project is expected
to enhance sand dunes on 25 private, oceanfront
properties in Surf City and enhance sand
dunes and the flat beach on municipal property.
To date, 20 private beachfront property
owners in Surf City, as well as the municipality
itself, have agreed to cooperate with the
project, while five remaining property owners
– the defendants -- have refused.
Access to the five properties at issue –
as well as other Surf City properties whose
owners have already signed easement agreements
allowing access -- is needed to enable the
Department of Environmental Protection (DEP)
and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to
commence the 17-mile beach nourishment and
replenishment project along the coast of
Long Beach Island. The project involves
extracting sand from the bottom of the ocean
and using it to build up existing dunes,
as well as to widen the existing “flat”
beach to guard against future erosion.
“Seeking
access to privately-owned beachfront property
in Surf City is important to preserving
our beaches and protecting the public safety,”
said Attorney General Rabner.
The
state lawsuit notes that, throughout its
history, Long Beach Island has been hit
by periodic coastal storms such as hurricanes
or nor-easters that have ravaged beaches
and breached protective dunes. These infrequent
but devastating storms have resulted in
drowning deaths and the loss of hundreds
of homes in Long Beach Island communities,
as well as hundreds of millions of dollars
worth of non-residential property damage.
The
state contends that the defendants are maintaining
their properties in a manner inadequate
to protect Long Beach Island and its residents
from the high risk of storm damage, and
have unreasonably failed to abate this nuisance
by impeding the progress of a public project
that is essential to protect all of Long
Beach Island.
“Over
the years, we have learned important lessons
about the critical role properly maintained
beaches and dune systems play in the protection
of property and lives,'' said DEP Commissioner
Lisa P. Jackson. “Each year, the state
allocates tens of millions of dollars toward
beach restoration efforts because of the
huge public benefit beaches provide in terms
of protecting property and providing enjoyment
to all of us. No individual property owner
has the right to put himself ahead of the
public's interest.''
Ultimately,
the beach replenishment project is expected
to create fortified beaches in four other
Long Beach island municipalities including
Long Beach Township, Harvey Cedars, Ship
Bottom and Beach Haven. After the Surf City
beach replenishment phase is complete, the
project will likely continue in the adjacent
town to the south, Ship Bottom. Work in
Ship Bottom could begin as early as this
year, provided that the necessary funding
remains after completion of the Surf City
portion, and the necessary easements are
acquired. The state and the borough of Ship
Bottom are actively attempting to acquire
these easements.
>> LBI
Complaint (609k pdf) plugin
>> LBI
Brief (1mb pdf) plugin
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