Several blocks of Rockaway Beach will be closed this summer due to construction
Photo by Malaya Sadler on Unsplash
With just two weeks until the unofficial start of summer, the city announced it would close several blocks of Rockaway Beach. NYC Parks on Thursday said six blocks will be temporarily closed with no sand, swim, or recreation access from May through September as part of an ongoing resiliency project to protect the coast from severe storms.
Starting Memorial Day Weekend through July 15, there will be no beach access from Beach 92nd to Beach 95th Streets and from Beach 109th to Beach 111th Streets; Beach 112th Street will be closed between July and September, according to the department.
Starting Memorial Day Weekend, about 62 blocks of Rockaway Beach will be open for swimmers seven days a week; 72 blocks will be open to swimmers by July 15. About 21 blocks will be open for recreation and sand access only. Despite the closures, the entire boardwalk will remain open for the summer.
Led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the $336 million Atlantic Shorefront Resiliency Project began in 2020 and is projected to be completed in 2026. The project involves the creation of 14 new “stone groin” structures, the restoration of five existing groins, the creation of a “reinforced dune system,” and the renourishment of sand on Rockaway Beaches’ Atlantic Ocean-facing side.
These smaller projects will help the accumulation of sand, promote less erosion, make wider beaches, and combat the effects of storms in general.
“We appreciate the Rockaway community’s partnership as we work to protect the Rockaways from future storms and long-term erosion,” Kizzy Charles-Guzman, Executive Director of the Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice, said. “The beach closures this summer will advance critical work to protect this frontline community, ensuring a stronger and more resilient beach for years to come.”
Rockaway Beaches’ Summer 2022 schedule goes as follows:
May through July 15, 2022
Full access – swim, sand, and recreation access
-
Beach 9-13
-
Beach 16-18
-
Beach 32-36
-
Beach 59-65
-
Beach 69-86
-
Beach 117-145
Sand and recreation only
-
Beach 13-16
-
Beach 18-32
-
Beach 36-38
-
Beach 65-69
-
Beach 86-91
No access
-
Beach 92-95
-
Beach 109-111
Periodic sand and water closures for dune construction
-
Beach 136-149
July 15 through September 2022
Full access – swim, sand, and recreation access
-
Beach 9-13
-
Beach 16-18
-
Beach 32-36
-
Beach 59-65
-
Beach 69-86
-
Beach 91-109
-
Beach 112-115
-
Beach 121-136
Sand and recreation only
-
Beach 13-16
-
Beach 18-32
-
Beach 36-38
-
Beach 65-69
-
Beach 86-91
-
Beach 115 – 121
-
Beach 136-140
No access
-
Beach 109-112
Periodic sand and water closures for dune construction
-
Beach 136-149
Rockaway community members and business owners have voiced their frustration with the last-minute schedule change. The official announcement comes shortly after both NYC Parks and the USACE failed to attend a meeting regarding the project, according to neighborhood newspaper The Wave.
“My outrage knows no bounds when it comes to these people,” Jeremy Jones, Vice President of the Rockaway Beach Civic Association, said, according to the paper. “I understand people [can’t make events] but it’s three weeks before the beginning of summer.”
Community advocates are organizing a rally to halt beach closures and push them until after the summer season. A petition to lobby Mayor Eric Adams, NYC Parks, and USACE to halt the project has already received 3,530 signatures.
After Hurricane Sandy, city officials immediately started looking for solutions to the area’s weakness against flooding and severe weather events. In 2018, the city shuttered roughly 11 blocks between Beach 91st and Beach 102nd Streets because of safety issues from erosion just days before the summer season kicked off, as 6sqft reported. The stretch of popular beachfront reopened the following year after a $13.4 million beach replenishment project.
Additional information and updates on the project’s effect on Rockaway Beach can be found here.
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