Long Beach boardwalk fans eager to see it fixed

In the City of Long Beach, where the rhythms of life pick up in summer, no place pulses with more action than its boardwalk.

From New York Avenue to Neptune Boulevard, the 2.2-mile stretch of pine draws thousands of locals and visitors from sunrise to sunset. Cyclists cruise on custom bikes as runners log miles alongside them. Couples on benches take in views of the Atlantic Ocean. Teenagers flirt on the ramps down to the parking lots.

Deteriorating condition

But the boardwalk's deteriorating condition has cut into the beachfront idyll for many, and a growing number of residents and visitors say the time has come for major repairs.

Jennifer Englert, 27, said she's stopped jogging on the boardwalk since she tripped and fell last July.

"Your foot gets caught on these planks," some of which are warped, loose or split, said Englert, who said she hit her jaw against the boardwalk and scratched her arms, hands and legs. "It's a shame because I pay a lot of money to live here, and one of the appeals is the boardwalk as a runner and I can't even run on the boardwalk."

City officials acknowledge the problems and say they're trying to address them.

However, officials say any major renovation of the boardwalk first built more than 100 years ago is on hold until the Army Corps of Engineers issues a draft storm-protection plan next year that would entail a new boardwalk.

But one option under a Corps plan - ditching the wooden boardwalk surface for a concrete version that is more durable and easier to maintain - already is causing controversy.

Keeping it real

"Traditional boardwalks are exactly that: board walks," said Tray Turkoanje, 46, of Long Beach. "If it was slabs of cement, it would be like the street or the sidewalk."

For the past several weeks, city maintenance crews have replaced hundreds of old planks with new pieces of southern yellow pine to try to address the worst of the decay.

For now, however, the city is holding off on a wholesale restoration as it awaits the Army Corps plan, due in mid-2011. That plan is expected to call not only for a new boardwalk, but for the rebuilding of jetties, elevating a portion of the beach and addressing flooding on the bay side of the island.

The federal government would pay 65 percent of the total cost; New York State, 24.5 percent; and the city, 10.5 percent. Replacing one block of boardwalk costs about $1.5 million, City Manager Charles Theofan said.

"We have real good prospects in the next two to three years of getting a brand-new boardwalk. The question becomes, what are we going to do in the interim?" Theofan said. "Are we going to replace whole sections of boardwalk for thousands and thousands of dollars? Or do we look to maintain what we have?"

Theofan said officials are "seriously considering" using concrete to replace the wooden boardwalk, but concrete is only one option.

Others include installing planks made of a plastic-wood composite, or using different types of wood more durable than pine.

Any rebuilding would also include a sea wall or natural barrier, such as sand, under the boardwalk to protect against storm surge.

"This is just about our most important piece of infrastructure, from a public-use perspective," said Public Works Commissioner Kevin Mulligan. "It's a treasured asset in the community."

Anyone can use the boardwalk at no charge.

Nonetheless, some boardwalk denizens are growing impatient.

Total replacement wanted

"Fixing a board here, a board there, I don't understand why they don't replace the whole boardwalk," said Eric Sacknoff, 50, of Rockville Centre, who's biked on the boardwalk for some 15 years.

Rob Cannon, a mechanic at Local Cycles on West Park Avenue, said the shop sees five or six flat tires a day "solely due to splinters on the boardwalk."

"It's more than just splinters. It's nails sticking out of the boardwalk, it's loose boards," Cannon said. "It's become a pretty dangerous place to ride."