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I am curious to know what everyone thinks of the Harvey Cedars beach replenishment. I saw it for the first time this weekend and was in shock! I thought they did a nice job in Surf City but Harvey Cedars looks aweful. The ocean is so far from the houses that the place has lost all of its charm. I have been renting a beachfront on Hudson Ave forever and sad to say this will be my last year staying there. I will have to find a house on one of the beaches that hasn't been "touched" now. I do not know what is up with those disgusting split rail fences at the beach entrances either. They look so cheap and look like cattle shoots or something. Honestly you can't even see the ocean from any of the houses now, much less hear it. I can't imagine any of the home owners are too happy with this. I know it was needed but really this just seems extreme. All of the things we used to love about staying in that house are now gone, so no reason to stay there. We used to love being able to watch the water from the deck, we used to fall asleep to the sounds of the ocean and wake up to a beautiful sunrise over the water, we used to be able to see everyone from our group on the beach and know what everyone was up to, we used to be able to watch for shells to wash up and know when was the best time to go for a walk and look for treasure.....and so much more. That is all just a memory now because when you look out the windows all you see is sand, you can't even see the water any more. I feel bad for everyone who has homes in that section. No one will rent them now and surely no one will buy them, not as long as there are other beaches on LBI that still have that island charm. I can only describe Harvey Cedars as very commercial looking now.

The replenishment plan is the same for all towns - you just think it is different.

I guess you didnt get the response you were looking for! This last winter opened everyones eyes.

Obviously the OP could care less about his landlord.

Are you exaggerating a bit? Hard to believe you can't see or hear the ocean or see the sunrise from an ocean front home regardless of the beach replenishment

No exaggeration go take a look. All of the neighbors said they have NO view of the ocean from their first floors, which the homes are built up on pilings so the first floor is by no means ground level. If you go up to the second floor, you have a view of the water but you still can't hear it. It is that far away! All of the second from the ocean homes have absolutely no view of the water now. All of the homeowners I talked to are not happy with it (well I only talked with two different ones which is why I asked the questions because I am curious what others think, maybe they are thrilled with it, my personal opinion is that I don't like it and will find somewhere else on the island to go. I will keep moving until I have no where else left to go on the island.) The homeowners I talked to said that this is much more extreme than they thought it was going to be.

Land Shark - When you have your hard earned money invested in this island then you have the right to voice your opinion. Right now you don't. I would suggest you look elsewhere, other than LBI where you may be enjoy the shore.

"If you go up to the second floor, you have a view of the water but you still can't hear it."

Prepostrous!

(Make that: "Preposterous!")

Landshark, have you ever been in Harvey Cedars when the bay met the ocean? If it's going to happen that's where it historically occurs. I don't know of any place on this barrier island where you can't hear the sounds of water. That is especially Hudson Ave., which is one of the best surfing beaches on the east coast. Wide beaches is the envy of any homeowner on the Island. Buy a house in Harvey Cedars, and maybe your opinion will change.

Hudson Ave is not a surf spot anymore. Have you actually gone up and looked at it? No one is surfing there anymore. Which is another thing we loved about our vaction was watching the surfers. The surfers used to drive up to the entrance to the beach and check the waves right there. They can not do this anymore as you can not see the water until you take a substantial walk. And why all the hostilty? I have a right to an opinion and Lord knows I have invested a boat load of my hard earned money renting a home on the beach for $5000 plus dollars a week not including all of the money I spend patronizing all of your businesses while I am there.
I just want to know if the actual homeowners in Harvey Cedars are happy with it. As I said maybe they are. That is what I want to know. So if anyone on here actually owns a home in Harvey Cedars, I would like to know how you feel about it. I also do hope that you are truely happy with it, I would just like to know your opionions.

I think it is great. It looks magnificent. Great job by the Army Corp of Engineers. I hope they get to my part of LBT soon.

Somebody sounds a bit like a drama queen.

I have not seen the beaches in Harvey Cedars so I am curious to know how substantial of a walk we are talking about? When I think of a long walk from the street to the water I think of certain sections of the Wildwoods.

It is nowhere near as long as Wildwood's beaches! People are just so used to having the waves breaking literally right under their decks the change takes getting used to. Land Shark - you need to consider the alternative. You need to go up tract (I think it is around) 63 or 67 in North Beach where there are garage slabs hanging in mid air attached to pilings because the waves washed under them. If you are going to have an ocean front home to rent and be in Harvey Cedars there is really little choice but to build a dune system to protect it. The existing one simply wasn't working. I agree with you - if you don't like the beach they build move to another town. But it had to be build for the good of all island homeowners and tenants.

Here are photo albums of the project:

h ttp://home.comcast.net/~jvhc/HCBRP/

(Remove the space in the h ttp)

The comments section is filled with praise from - the local residents.

I agree that the split rail fences look out of place. I saw the surf city beaches and think that they look like fake manufactured beaches. It is certainly different than the Long Beach Island natural beaches I have come to love. I think this winter has shown that the beaches are temporary - even on the replenished beaches. The only thing that is permanent is the large dunes. I know many people in beach haven hope this never happens to their beach.

By the way, I checked out the pictures and the comments. Answer Man - correct me if I am wrong but i saw only 7 comments. 5 of the 7 comments were praise for the photographer - not the project. The other two comments were that they cannot wait to sit on the beaches - those appear to be from people who have not seen the beaches in person. So i\I dont see the comments "filled with praise" - am i looking in the wrong section?

By the way, before you start bashing anyone about expressing their opinion, this is from the taxpayer association newsletter:

Second, the Mayor and Commissioners feel that the street ends/beach entrances in Surf City look too industrial or commercial, and are not in keeping with our town. They will be working with the Army Corps and the town work crews to make them look much more natural.

I have not been there yet this season so I am not commenting directly to Harvey Cedars, but I know that change is difficult, and we want things to remain the same. I still prefer the "old" LBI with cottages, pebbly yards and driveways, and open windows, but my kids and grandchildren know and accept mega-mansions that take up the whole lot, designer pavers in the driveways, landscaping, and very expensive furniture and of course A/C. There is nothing wrong with that, but each of us has his/her own vision of the seashore. Newcomers will know of no other way than dunes that block the first floor, and they won't mind it a bit. Actually, it may get people off their decks and down to the water!

fred: My point was that there were *no* negative comments from the residents, after either seeing it in person or viewing the photos, when given the chance to anonymously bash the project.

Beaches too long? Wait till the next Noreaster and it won't be nearly so far away. Realize that they purposely over replenish to compensate for the fact that it is expected that a large percentage will wash back into the ocean within the first two years.

Can't hear the ocean? Go back at a different tide and weather conditions. My beach hasn't been replenished, and on calm days with little waves the ocean is rather quiet. Other days I can easily hear it two blocks away while standing at the Boulevard.

No surfers? Maybe that's because it was calm that day -- which also explains why you couldn't hear the ocean.

Can't see the ocean from the first floor? Good - you shouldn't! That means you have sufficient dune protection. Without it you risk being able to see the ocean rolling through your livingroom. Go up to the second floor and enjoy.

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