Avalon will use a $1 million grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to increase flood protection at Bay Park Marina, upgrade its boating facilities and improve bay ecology along that section of the barrier island.
The marina sits off Ocean Drive between 53rd and 57th streets, serving as one of the shore town's primary seasonal dock slips. It also has playgrounds and recreational spaces used for fishing tournaments and other events. Borough officials said the improvement project will create a "living shoreline" at the marina, including 750 plantings of native and pollinator vegetation and a barrier to help support nesting terrapin turtles and other species.
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Upgrades at Bay Park Marina also will include a flood-resistant curb to reduce high-tide flooding in the residential area that surrounds the bay.
"Coastal communities are obligated to explore structural and natural components to resiliency efforts to protect the community and environmental assets," Avalon Mayor John McCorristin said. "We are grateful for the financial support for this living shoreline and excited to get the project moving in the coming months."
Avalon officials said the grant will support the construction of a new boat ramp and dockmaster building. The marina also will get new piers, a handicap-accessible kayak launch and a new bulkhead and sidewalks.
The grant is part of a coastal resilience initiative to invest $139 million in strengthening shorelines in 31 states. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is partnering with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation on the grant program.
The upgrades at Bay Park Marina are among four New Jersey projects funded by the grant program. It also has awarded $13.53 million to restore Stouts Creek in Lacey Township, Ocean County; $1.57 million for ecosystem restoration and flood resilience in Sayreville, Middlesex County; and $383,600 for another living shoreline project in Long Beach Township, Ocean County.
In Avalon, the Bay Park Marina project is one of several ecological initiatives the borough has undertaken in recent years. Avalon has created a pollinator habitat at Armacost Park, protective turtle barriers along Avalon Boulevard and a program to plant native vegetation across much of the borough's dune system.