The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
FIXING UP THE BEACH
Village: Sand replenishment, Yesterday’s Royal major concerns
At the village’s Board of Trustees meeting on Tuesday, offifficials touched on a number of subjects regarding the beach after it opened its 2014 season on Memorial Day.
Village Administrator Joe Benedict said the village has
reached a key stepping stone in its ongoing beach replenish- ment project. Last week, the village received confifirmation from the Department of the State approving the village’s proposal to extend the replacement of 3,400 linear feet of sand to 6,200 linear feet of sand. Benedict said the village is still waiting to receive approval from the DEC and the Army Corps of Engineers, but that the state approval is the largest hurdle in the process.
The project, which Benedict
hopes the village can begin in the fall, is the product of a two- year- old Department of State Local Waterfront Revitalization Grant. The village will use sand that has been disposed of at an upland waste site from canal dredg-ing, which Benedicts aid should naturally be part of the beach today. The replenishment project did face opposition from some members of the public. Ann Kurtz, a Lakeshore Road resident of the town of Vienna, believes the vill age’s prev ious replenishment projects have brought more sand to her property, increasing the distance between her property and the lake, creating new sandbars that are hard to nav i gate and making it impossible to bring boats to shore close to her home. Kurtz said several of her neighbors have complained as well, though none came to the meeting. “I just hope that the village will do a study before this project that will include other neighbors and not just Sylvan Beach,” Kurtz said. Benedict said what Kurtz is experiencing is a natural process, and not a result of the sand project. After the meeting, Benedict said recent studies conducted by Hamilton College concluded that the installation of the Barge Canal shifted the direction the shore was moving, causing the eastward shore expansion to recede and head back into the lake. Dredging of the canal, which happens frequently, is also taking away sand that would normally be deposited by Fish Creek and the canal itself. “Thats and should end up on the beach, not in upland disposal sites,” Benedict said. Benedict sa id t he sa nd project would help real estate values since many residents are interested in beach front property. He said it was unfor t unate t hat nature is denying Kurtz what she wants at her home. “Sandbars shift every year, that’s a natural occurrence that we can’t control,” Benedict said. He has spent his entire life living on the edge of Oneida Lake. Benedict said an additional benefit of the sand replenishment will be the reduction of l ake vegetation near shore, and will allow village workers to get to vegetation for clean up. This lake vegetation makes swimming difficult and can create putrid smells at the end of the season when they become septic. Mayor Gregor y Horan also addressed concerns over Yesterday’s Royal and Sylvan Beach Amusement Park at the meeting. The amusement park will open on June 28 according to press releases from owner Douglas Waterbury, though the historic restaurant is a concern in the village. The property was posted on May 16 , citing struc-tural problems that must be fixed. The village declared the building uninhabitable. Horan said there are several steps in the process, including a letter from an engineer addressing the village’s concerns, followed by plans for repairs and then a building permit. Horan said he is meeting with Waterbury on Friday and that the village had received the letter from an engineer regarding the building. “I think this is a good sign,” Horan said. “We welcome the Royal and the amusement park to be reopened. We do depend on one a nother for business, but it isn’t our only attraction here in the village. I am anxious for the two to re-open.” Benedict noted the vil-lage’s other attractions seem to be drawing crowds; parking in the village, which is a reliable indicator of visitor traffic, has been at similar levels to last year’s figures. At t he board meeting, the village trustees also addressed the following: • It was determined that they would spend more time with the Oneida County deal, seeking more information in order to form a more informed opinion. More in-formation here: http: // bit . ly/ 1krJuoX • Parking fences, which continue to deteriorate, were discussed. The village may choose to create a parking lot plan in the fall. • Due to the amusement park being closed, the village will begin bringing i n porta- potties on the weekends in order to lessen use of the bath house. • The village will begin beefing up its zero- tolerance open container laws with a dozen new signs. State police will increase patrols along the beach. More information here: http:// bit. ly/ 1kxyqW6