Town challenges state’s sand transfer plant plan — When it comes to the sand transfer plant in Manalapan, it might as well be a four-letter word. Many in town blame the plant at the Boynton Inlet for depleting the town’s beaches as it sends sand south — though it’s a matter very much up for debate.
Now Manalapan is asking for an administrative hearing after the Florida Department of Environmental Protection moved to renew a 10-year agreement with Palm Beach County without consulting the town.
Town Manager Eric Marmer said at the commission’s Oct. 14 meeting that a resident alerted the town to FDEP’s unilateral move to proceed with the plan. In response, the town will seek a stay to evaluate the proposed agreement, he said.
“We talked to them. I thought they were gonna include us more. They did not,” Marmer said.
“They were trying to negotiate something that was less formal, but I’m not really happy with the fact that they were doing that without consulting us at all,” he added.
Even though the sand transfer plant is not as harmful to Manalapan’s beaches as initially believed, Marmer emphasized that any project affecting the town warrants municipal input.
Town Attorney Keith Davis is preparing to file a notice of intent challenging FDEP’s approach.
Town rethinks beach-raking strategy — Manalapan is considering a major overhaul of its beach maintenance approach, potentially replacing traditional beach raking with a more targeted trash collection method.
Town Manager Eric Marmer proposed at the commission’s Oct. 14 meeting using part-time town employees with a side-by-side vehicle to conduct beach cleanup two to three times weekly.
The plan aims to reduce the costly and potentially invasive beach-raking services, which currently run around $275 to $300 per session.
“We saw so much trash getting picked up while the beach raker was out there,” Marmer told town commissioners. “I got a text from a resident asking why there’s so much trash on the beach even when the beach raker is working.”
The proposed strategy would keep beach raking as an option for significant sargassum accumulation, but significantly reduce its frequency. The town would retain the flexibility to call private beach rakers when necessary.
By using part-time staff and a side-by-side vehicle, Manalapan hopes to create a more efficient and cost-effective beach maintenance program, while keeping municipal employees engaged.
A detailed plan is expected to be presented at the commission’s Nov. 4 meeting.
In April, town officials tried to get to the bottom of which mechanical beach-raking company was leaving deep ruts near turtle nests. The two companies that clean the beach of debris, though, pointed the finger at each other.
Residents sign up for iguana eradication plan — Well, for those old enough to remember, as the cartoon icon Yosemite Sam used to say, “Varmint, I’m a-gonna blow you to smithereens!”
Manalapan Police Chief Jeff Rasor says approximately 25%-30% of residents have agreed to allow a police sharpshooter with an air rifle onto their property for iguana eradication.
The town decided in September to move away from an outside vendor and have a police officer give it a go.
“We’ve gotten a very positive response from the community,” Rasor said at the commission’s Oct. 14 meeting.
Residents interested in participating in the iguana removal program are encouraged to contact the town’s Police Department for more information.
Sgt. Tracey Merritt, the Police Department’s firearms range master and expert, will be tasked with trying to efficiently kill the iguanas. Signs will be posted at the guard station on Point Manalapan — which is the iguana beachhead, per se — to inform residents when Merritt will be on the property.
New garbage hauler selected — Manalapan has chosen Waste Pro as its new waste collection provider after a competitive bidding process. At the Oct. 14 Town Commission meeting, officials approved moving forward with negotiations for a contract with the waste management company.
Town Manager Eric Marmer reported that a selection committee reviewed three proposals and ranked Waste Pro as the top vendor. The initial first-year contract price is set at $53,731, with future years to be negotiated based on potential cost-of-living adjustments.
“But I wouldn’t negotiate a contract that we would, you know, go from $53-to-$100,000 the next year, or something like that,” Marmer said.
Waste Pro services similar coastal communities, including Ocean Ridge, Lauderdale-by-the-Sea and Hillsboro Beach.
The commission authorized Marmer to continue contract negotiations, with a final agreement expected to be presented at its Nov. 4 meeting. The proposed contract would have an initial five-year term.
Less trouble to install emergency generators — Manalapan town commissioners on Oct. 14 took the first step to simplifying the permitting process for residents seeking to install emergency generators, eliminating the need for architectural review and creating a more direct administrative approval path.
The commission approved, on first reading, an ordinance that would allow emergency generator permit applications to bypass the town’s Architectural Commission.
Instead, these applications will now receive an administrative review before moving directly to the building department for permitting.
Town Attorney Keith Davis said the ordinance aims to expedite the process for residents seeking to install emergency generators.
The ordinance will return for final approval at the commission’s Nov. 4 meeting.
— John Pacenti
Cove neighbors say long docks would ruin their views — A Point Manalapan resident seeking to build a dock extending out into Manatee Cove withdrew his permit application just before his variance request was to be heard on Oct. 14 by the Manalapan Town Commission.
Many neighbors of the property at 1400 Lands End Road, purchased in April for $4.5 million by Adam and Ana Bersin, said they face similar problems to the ones the Bersins are experiencing — shallow waters that sometimes make it impossible to launch a boat into the cove.
However, the neighbors said they were all aware of the cove’s limitations when they bought there — and did so because they knew that would limit boat traffic. The cove is in the Intracoastal Waterway but sees little boat traffic because of its shallowness.
Nearby homeowners, writing to the town in opposition to the variance, feared that if the variance was approved, more dock-extension variances would be requested in the future. They said they do not want to see their idyllic views turned into a marina vista with 25-foot dock extensions into the cove.
Adam Bersin told The Coastal Star he decided to withdraw the application at this time, but may consider reapplying in the future.
— Larry Barszewski
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