Margate's bayfront promenade is partially completed.
By NANETTE LoBIONDO GALLOWAY
MARGATE It's nearly completed and city administration is already planning a dedication ceremony for the new promenade on Amherst Avenue.
According to City Administrator Richard Deaney, the city plans to hold a ceremony 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 18 to dedicate the promenade, which is in its final stage of completion.
City engineer Ed Dennis Jr. said the remaining decking was scheduled to be completed on Thursday, Sept. 3 and the railings and lighting completed by next week.
The promenade was supposed to be completed by Memorial Day but supply chain issues resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic delayed delivery of the expensive Ipe wood used for the decking.
Contractor Fred M. Schiavone Construction was awarded a $2.075 million contract on Nov. 2, 2020, with an original completion date of March 30. However, the decking material was split into two deliveries with the first delivery received on June 21 and the second shipment reportedly lost at sea due to the global pandemic.
The city opened the completed portion of the promenade in July, and the contractor immediately began completion of the remaining section of decking after receiving the second delivery of wood in August.
The promenade, which fulfills a component of the city's Master Plan to have a pedestrian pathway connecting the Ventnor Avenue business district at Washington Avenue to the Marina District along Amherst Avenue, spans Adams Avenue to Coolidge Avenue. Two private developers, Barbary Coast Marina and Harbour Bay Marina, will be required to complete the footpath across their developments to Washington Avenue.
In a related action, the Board of Commissioners Sept. 2 conveyed a contiguous 25- by 75-foot strip of land along Amherst Avenue to Barbary Coast in compliance with Ordinance 21 of 2018, which granted the developer seven parking spaces in return for replacing 175 linear feet of city-owned bulkhead. The engineer has certified that the bulkhead was completed to the city's satisfaction.
The promenade comes after the city spent $1.5 million to replace 1,250 feet of the deteriorating 1929 bulkhead at a higher elevation to prevent wave action and erosion during high tides.
Casa Lamberti at the other end of Amherst Avenue near the Longport border was required to replace 315 feet of city-owned bulkhead in exchange for the lot where a new restaurant is under construction.
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