City of Encinitas announces Project Partnership Agreement with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to add sand to the coastline

The city of Encinitas along with the city of Solana Beach will sign a Project Partnership Agreement May 4 with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) for the San Diego County, CA Project (also known as the USACE Coastal Storm Damage Reduction Project), according to a city of Encinitas news release. The cities will sign the Project Partnership Agreement to begin placement of beach dredged sand this fall as the first phase of a 50-year coastal resiliency project that has been in development since 2000.

The project includes the construction of protective beach berms along two segments within both Encinitas and Solana Beach. Sand will be brought in from offshore via a dredge and pumped onto the beach in a slurry. Segment 1 includes the construction of a 50-foot-wide protective beach berm extending along 7,800 feet of shoreline in Encinitas, between north of Swami’s Beach to south of Beacon’s Beach, using 340,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment. Renourishment will occur on average every five years, with approximately 220,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment over a 50-year period of federal participation, for a total of nine additional nourishments.

Segment 2 is within Solana Beach, which proposes the construction of a 150-foot-wide beach berm extending along a 7,200-foot-strech of shoreline using approximately 700,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment. Renourishment will occur on average every 10 years, with approximately 290,000 cubic yards of compatible sediment, over a 50-year period of federal participation, for a total of four additional nourishments. Segment 2 contains the majority of the beach within the city limits of Solana Beach (Fletcher Cove south to just north of the City of Del Mar limits).

The City of Encinitas stated in the press release that it is “greatly appreciative of the efforts of the California State Parks, Division of Boating and Waterways for being a steadfast State funding partner. The federal funding for the Project was secured through the persistent and invaluable efforts of Congressman Mike Levin.” “This project to put sand on our beaches in Encinitas has been a long time coming! Visitors and residents who enjoy our Pacific Ocean shoreline will appreciate the decades of work that was done to make it happen. Much thanks to Congressman Levin for his efforts to get the federal funding source finalized!” City of Encinitas Mayor Tony Kranz stated in the news release.

A signing ceremony is scheduled to commemorate this historic milestone as this project will be the first of its kind in Southern California in more than 50 years. Los Angeles District Commander, USACE Colonel Julie Balten and Congressman Levin will join both the city of Encinitas Mayor Tony Kranz and city of Solana Beach Mayor Lesa Heebner at the ceremony scheduled for the morning of May 4, at the Solana Beach Community Center at Fletcher Cove, 133 Pacific Avenue, Solana Beach, 92075 at 11 a.m.