With an estimated loss of close to 30 feet of land from erosion in front of the two westernmost condominium buildings at the Westport by the Sea residential development at the foot of W. Ocean Avenue this fall and winter, property owners are now scrambling to find some sort of a temporary fix that will keep their homes and vacation properties from being undermined by the sea this winter.
Imminent danger
The two of the 13 three-story buildings in the complex that are closest to the shoreline — numbers 7 and 8 at the northern end of the property — are now less than 60 feet from the ocean’s ragged edge. Each high tide’s wave action continues to ravage the shoreline, leaving a seven- to eight-foot drop to the beach.
Finding a weak spot where a trail exists to the shoreline between the two buildings, Mother Nature has cut a gully that is now being shored up with sandbags in an effort to slow the erosion process. On Tuesday, Jan. 12, the State Parks Commission enacted an emergency closure to the popular Lighthouse State Park footpath to the beach adjacent to Westport by the Sea’s northern property line due to land loss and the resultant dangerous drop-off to the beach.
Options limited
As all ocean coastline dwellers have become painfully aware, there are few options for saving properties in danger of shoreline erosion, and they all come at great expense.
By state and federal statutes, no hard materials are allowed to be installed, such as seawalls. The addition of sand, sand and more sand appears to be the only defense.
One such option is to fill low spots on the beach in front of the property with sand. Facing the same situation, condominium owners and the City of Ocean Shores recently deposited sand in front of buildings in danger there as the result of sand-filled geotubes placed in front of those buildings several years ago failing this winter. The first overnight tide washed away that $14,000 effort.
Another option is to deposit sand on the landward side, but that option only allows for nourishment up to the land’s original height.
Any action, with the exception of a declared emergency, requires a permitting process that includes public hearings on proposed fixes, a process that takes an estimated 18 to 24 months to complete.
By definition, emergency action may be taken to save the properties only when water is actually lapping at the doorsteps of an endangered building or buildings. It would appear that an emergency declaration could well be in Westport by the Sea’s near future.