NJ Governor Christie wants the taxpayers of NJ to pay twice. NJ taxpayers (and every taxpayer in the country for that matter) have already paid to build a beach and protective dunes in Atlantic City. These dunes protect the pubic infrastructure of the boardwalk, and the private property landward of it. But Christie’s DEP wants to lower the dunes so people can see the ocean. That’s when you’ll pay twice. When the ocean over-tops these dunes in a storm, your tax dollars are going to clean up the mess. The Press of Atlantic City covered the effort to lower the dunes today, complete with secret meeting between DEP officials and local legislators.
http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/breaking/article_fa325fcc-abd8-11df-bf2b-001cc4c002e0.html
This author lives in a town where dunes block the ocean view from much of the boardwalk. Our dunes were built by the town, at the town’s expense. They were not built by the Army Corps when tens of millions of dollars were spent filling our beaches. Go figure. We’ve lost much of our view, and yes crazy people want to lower the dunes and get the view back. Those people did not live here in 1992 when the December Nor’Easter destroyed the boardwalk. Not damaged: destroyed. There were no dunes.
I’d love to be able to see the ocean as a drove down Ocean Ave here. I can’t. I’d love to be able to see the waves as I drove down Highway 12 in the Outer Banks. I can’t. But don’t lower those dunes for my view. I know they provide something far more valuable than a view.