Sea Isle's New Capital Plan Includes Stormwater Pumping Stations

By DONALD WITTKOWSKI Sea Isle City’s new five-year capital plan is dominated by stormwater pumping station projects that would protect low-lying neighborhoods from flooding on the barrier island. Pumping stations intercept floodwater and channel it back into the bay much faster than it would normally take to drain off the streets after a coastal storm. They have proved effective in Ocean City, Avalon and other shore communities vulnerable to flooding. Sea Isle built its first pumping station in 2019 in the flood-prone area at the bay end of 38th Street and Sounds Avenue and will next shift its focus on sections of Landis Avenue that are hit by stormwater. Overall, the new capital plan proposes total spending of about $40.1 million from 2023 to 2027 for improvements to the beaches, bayfront, roads, Promenade and other parts of town. The plan calls for spending $13 million over the next five years for a series of pumping stations to protect the Landis Avenue corridor from floodwater seeping out of the bay. “I really see these projects taking off in the next five years,” City Business Administrator George Savastano said to City Council during a presentation on the capital plan Tuesday. City Business Administrator George Savastano and Chief Financial Officer Jennifer McIver outline details of the new capital plan to City Council. The first pumping station is proposed in the area of 46th Street and Landis Avenue to the bay. Savastano noted that the city is applying to the Federal Emergency Management Agency for a $3 million to $4 million grant to help fund the project. FEMA is not expected to make a decision on the grant until around March, Savastano said. The city also has plans for a pumping station at 43rd Street and Landis to the bay. The project is in the design phase. Savastano told Council that the city and Cape May County are discussing the possibility of building new pumping stations in a partnership to share the cost of the projects. Those pumping stations would be in drainage areas controlled by the county. As many as eight pumping stations are being considered along the Landis Avenue artery from 32nd Street to 72nd Street, Savastano said. In combination with the new pumping stations, Sea Isle plans to spend $3.8 million over the next five years on road reconstruction and drainage improvements to help ease flooding on the island. City Council President Mary Tighe noted that road, drainage and pumping station projects are part of Sea Isle’s strategy dating back to 2007 to fight flooding. “The pumping stations are always at the forefront of what we’re talking about,” Tighe said. Floodwaters surround a small building at the public boat ramp at the bay end of 42nd Place during a storm in October 2021. Sea Isle is planning to build new flood-control projects. Sea Isle also plans to spruce up its beaches, bayfront and Promenade with new projects in the capital plan. The plan is essentially a sweeping blueprint for the next five years for citywide improvements, including upgrades to the water and sewer system. Council will need to adopt funding ordinances in the future to finance individual projects. Savastano said Council and Mayor Leonard Desiderio’s administration will work closely together on the capital plan moving forward. “Both branches of government have to be in agreement. It’s a process that has worked well for us for 15-plus years,” he said. In an interview, Tighe said Savastano has been keeping Council informed about the capital plan, so there were no surprises when it was officially unveiled Tuesday. “Most of the stuff is pretty much expected,” she said. Overall, Tighe’s initial reaction was positive. She said the capital plan continues Sea Isle’s efforts to make the town “nice for people who live here year-round and for the visitors who come here.” Beach replenishment will help the tourist-dependent city to keep its shoreline in tip-top shape so it may continue attracting summer vacationers. Sea Isle, Strathmere and the southern end of Ocean City are scheduled to have their beaches replenished in 2023 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The cost of the beachfill project is estimated at $30 million. The Army Corps will pay the lion’s share. Sea Isle’s capital plan includes $2 million in funding in 2023 for its share of the cost of the beach replenishment project. A powerful storm in October caused serious erosion to the dunes between 91st and 88th streets. Besides the aesthetic value of having wide, powdery beaches, the city will also benefit from the replenishment project by having a bigger barrier of sand and dunes to protect homes, businesses, the Promenade and roads from the ocean’s storm surge. Sea Isle is also planning to make cosmetic improvements to the Landis Avenue corridor downtown as well as the oceanfront Promenade, according to the capital plan. New decorative lighting is proposed at a cost of $700,000 for Landis Avenue between 37th and 39th streets and between 43rd and 45th streets, Savastano said. Decorative benches will be added to the Promenade and John F. Kennedy Boulevard at an estimated cost of $300,000. The benches originally were planned for 2024, but Tighe asked Savastano to move up the project to 2023 and he indicated that would be possible.