Sand Dune Showdown: North Wildwood vs. NJ

January 16, 2023

North Wildwood vs NJ: $21M legal battle over beach erosion!

In this episode of the American Shoreline Podcast, co-hosts Peter Ravella and Tyler Buckingham welcome Mayor Patrick Rosenello of North Wildwood, New Jersey to discuss the ongoing legal battle between his town and the state of New Jersey. The town is suing the state for $21 million, claiming that it spent a decade trying to hold back the waves with trucked in sand, and that the state's refusal to allow emergency repairs is putting public safety and property at risk. The DEP counters that there is no emergency, and that the proposed work could actually make erosion worse. Tune in to hear the latest developments and the mayor's perspective on this contentious issue. Only on ASPN!

Show Transcription
This transcription was generated by a computer. Please excuse any errors.
Peter Ravella & Tyler Buckingham

Peter and Tyler joined forces in 2015 and from the first meeting began discussing a project that would become Coastal News Today and the American Shoreline Podcast Network. At the time, Peter and Tyler were coastal consultants for Pete’s firm, PAR Consulting, LLC. In that role, they worked with coastal communities in Texas, Florida, and North Carolina, engaged in grant writing, coastal project development, shoreline erosion and land use planning, permitting, and financial planning for communities undertaking big beach restoration projects. Between and among their consulting tasks, they kept talking and kept building the idea of CNT & ASPN. In almost every arena they worked, public engagement played a central role. They spent thousands of hours talking with coastal stakeholders, like business owners, hotel operators, condo managers, watermen, property owners, enviros, surfers, and fishermen. They dived deep into the value, meaning, and responsibility for the American shoreline, segment-by-segment. Common threads emerged, themes were revealed, differences uncovered. There was a big conversation going on along the American shoreline! But, no place to have it. That's where CNT and ASPN were born.