By Tim O’Meilia
Oceanfront Manalapan residents made crystal clear they want no part of the regional beach management program designed to make approval of new renourishment projects smoother and quicker.
In an email and snail mail survey of the town’s seaside homeowners, residents voted 16-0 against the plan. All but one vote came from oceanfront estate owners, the other from the La Coquille Villas. One hundred forty-seven barrier island landowners were sent the questionnaire.
As a result, town commissioners took no action to sign the agreement at its Oct. 22 meeting.
The town of Palm Beach and Palm Beach County have signed and the town of South Palm Beach has indicated support.
“I suspect it’s a nonissue at this time,” said Mayor David Cheifetz.
Commissioner John Murphy asked for the survey last month after the Florida Department of Environmental Protection made a plea for the town’s support.
While the agreement would make it easier to implement long-term renourishment work on an inlet-to-inlet basis, Manalapan would not likely be affected since its beaches are all privately owned.
The town would not have been assessed any fees for signing, only if it became involved in any projects, an unlikely event since the town has no public access between the Lantana public beach and the Boynton Inlet.
It’s not the first time Manalapan has backed away from beach regulations. In July, commissioners unanimously agreed to drop plans to require periodic certification of all the seawalls in town, both ocean-side and on Point Manalapan, which could have proved expensive for homeowners. The proposal emerged from more than $6.1 million in damage to seaside seawalls when Hurricane Sandy bustled by offshore in 2012.
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