A 1920s era map of Shelter Island, Margate’s preferred location for dredge materials.
By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
MARGATE – Property owners who live in the bayside district of the city will soon get a perk that can help them navigate the Intracoastal Waterway. The city has applied to the state for a citywide dredging permit, which will reduce bureaucracy for residents seeking to dredge their canals.
All sediment and core samplings have been completed by Stockton University Coastal Research Center, and the application for the permit was sent to the NJ Department of Environmental Protection in September.
According to city engineer Ed Dennis Jr., a joint meeting was held with the NJDEP and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Nov. 11 to discuss if the city can use a hole in Shelter Island to place dredge materials, the city’s preferred method of disposal.
The Shelter Island site, also called Dredge Hole No. 90, is jointly owned by Margate and Ventnor, and the city has agreed to reserve half of the space available for Ventnor to use should it embark on a dredging project in the future. The hole was dredged in the early 1920s to build up the Ventnor Heights section of Ventnor.
The entities involved in providing the permits expressed concerns about how to proceed with the dual permitting process. City officials agreed to approach the dredging project in phases, with Phase 1 filling the Shelter Island hole with dredge materials, and a future phase restoring marshlands, which would require additional engineering to “rebuild the island” and develop a containment system to hold the fill in place, Dennis said.
State and federal officials discussed issuing a General Permit or the more customized and less-preferred Individual Permit.
“Right now, we only qualify for a General Permit if we design and apply for the entire project, Phase 1 and Phase 2, building the whole island up,” Dennis said. “It will be a much more complex design and add another layer of complexity since the Army Corps commented they would not look favorably to a permanent retaining structure. They are more interested in a temporary retaining system that can be removed once the island establishes itself.”
No decisions were made, but Dennis said the city should decide if it wants a General Permit for all phases, or an Individual Permit for the first phase only.
Solicitor John Scott Abbott recommended the commissioners consider applying for an Individual Permit for Phase 1.
“The dredge permit looks good. We did all the (environmental) studies the same way they did for the Army Corps project in Chelsea Heights. We would still be able to use Dredge Hole No. 86, but it would be more expensive,” he said.
Using Shelter Island would reduce the cost of dredging, which will likely be done over a 10-year period, because the city co-owns the island with Ventnor.
“The idea of restoration of wetlands is a favorable note,” Abbott said.
“I’m not in favor of spending money going that route until we see where we are at,” Commissioner John Amodeo said.
If the city agreed to restore wetlands, it would have to include Ventnor sharing the cost of the project, he said.
Abbott said that if the city agrees to apply for a permit for Phase 1, the permit could be issued by spring.
“It was very positive,” Abbott said about the meeting.
Dennis said the next step would be to apply for a pre-application meeting with the NJ DEP.
Administrator Richard Deaney said the city should decide soon about the path it will take so funding could be put in place in the city’s 2023 capital improvement plan. He asked Dennis to provide a proposal for applying for an Individual Permit.
“Will we need money for actual dredging in next year’s budget?” Commissioner Maury Blumberg asked.
Dennis said the earliest dredging could start would likely be next fall.
“There are a lot of moving parts that will affect the timeline,” Dennis said.
“We’re finally going to be able to swim those lagoons without bumping into the weeds,” Blumberg said.
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