The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers joined Mayor Bloomberg and Queens elected officials to mark the start of sand-pumping operations on Rockaway Beach last Thursday. Photo Courtesy Spencer T. Tucker/NYC Mayor’s Office
Mayor Bloomberg, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers representatives and elected officials gathered in Rockaway Beach last week to detail the progress of a sand replenishment plan that aims to provide flood control in an area where natural water barriers were devastated by Hurricane Sandy.
Conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the $36.4 million project is funded by federal Sandy relief funds and entails restoring 3.7 million cubic yards of sand in total – the equivalent of almost four Empire State buildings. The effort is expected to return Rockaway beaches to the levels they have not been at for decades.
Construction for phase one of the project takes place along Beach 89th to Beach 149th streets and includes restoring 600,000 cubic yards of sand. As part of the project’s second phase, more than three million cubic yards of sand will be restored along Beach 19th to Beach 149th streets.
“Replenishing the sand at Rockaway Beach complements our earlier work there, including building a series of protective walls and installing sand-filled trap bags that will serve as the core for a new dune,” Bloomberg said in a prepared statement. “Together, these measures will not only reverse damage to the beach done by Hurricane Sandy – they will make the beach stronger than it was before the storm and more protective for nearby communities.”
Colonel Paul Owen of the Army Corps of Engineers said “quality” sand is being funnelled to the beach.
“There’s a lot to be done, and there’s great work going on,” he told those gathered for last Thursday’s press conference. “And we have a lot more to do.”
While area civic leaders and South Queens legislators said they are pleased the project is happening, they noted residents have been asking for projects to protect the community from flooding for years – long before Sandy hit.
Civic leaders involved in Friends of Rockaway Beach, among others, “have done a tremendous, tremendous job advocating for this community,” Councilman Eric Ulrich (R-Ozone Park) said at the press conference.
Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder (D-Rockaway Park) agreed.
“It’s unfortunate it took a natural disaster for so many people to wake up to the problems that we’ve been facing in Rockaway for so, so long,” Goldfeder said at Thursday’s event.
By Anna Gustafson
