North Wildwood mayor responds to DEP lawsuit over dune work
NORTH WILDWOOD, N.J. (CBS) -- New Jersey's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) filed a lawsuit against North Wildwood last week to prevent the city from installing a steel bulkhead along its 15th Avenue dune.
A judge denied the state's request for an immediate injunction to prevent the city from continuing its efforts to install a bulkhead.
North Wildwood Mayor Patrick Rosenello accused the DEP of not acting quickly enough to protect the city.
Rosenello said Hurricane Ian's remnants in early October washed away 80 feet of the 15th Avenue dune, and now only 30 feet are left.
If the rest of it washes away, Rosenello said ocean water could flood the lifeguard station and nearby homes.
"This isn't a question of if this dune disappears, it's a question of when, and I would love nothing more than the DEP to take action and protect this dune and protect the town," Rosenello said. "But if they don't, we will."
CBS Philadelphia requested interviews with the department and the governor's office and is awaiting responses.
In a past statement to CBS Philadelphia, DEP said the city hasn't proven there was an imminent threat to loss of life or property, and installing a bulkhead could lead to more erosion.
The state also said the city still has a pending permit application from 2020 to install a bulkhead, but the application contained several deficiencies, which the city hadn't corrected.
Meanwhile, Rosenello's most immediate concern is a storm forecasted to hit the area later in the week, around the same time the mayor said they expect to get their bulkhead material.
"As a show of good faith, we're going to wait until there's a hole in the dune to show the DEP how wrong they are before we install the bulkhead," Rosenello said. "There's no scenario where the city of North Wildwood doesn't protect ourselves."
Both sides will face off in court on Jan. 17, 2023.