Everyone has been asking, and now there are answers as the deck at Main Street Beach & Park will be gone by May 2023. That’s the latest as Mayor Jim Forthofer gave council a report about his recent meeting with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, as well as some of the construction details about the scheduled work on the city’s west pier.
Forthofer reported the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE) met with contractors considering submitting bids to reconstruct the West Pier at the mouth of the Vermilion River on July 27 at the Vermilion Yacht Club and Main Street Beach. The city was represented by Service Director Tony Valerius, Port Authority member Jonathan Hauck and Forthofer.
Forthofer reported the deck at the end of Main Street needs to be removed in May 2023, stating the reason is vehicles will have to come down Main Street and cross the beach and over to the pier. “Either way, in the final design of Main Street Beach & Park, that deck’s gone. But the thing we have to bridge now is once that’s taken away, what seating is going to be provided? So we have from now to until about May of next year to figure out a way to get grants and things to find at least temporary seating for the people who usually gather on that deck. The deck is well beyond its shelf life, and I don’t have to tell you about the critters that live under there. It’s time for it to go.” He said the schedule is accelerated due to the arrival of the Army Corps and its equipment.
Construction, under the direction of the USACOE, will begin June and conclude in November. Equipment will travel up and down Main Street, across the beach to the West Pier. The mayor asked that they snow-fence off the travel area which will make approximately half to two-thirds of the sandy beach inaccessible. Valerius will video record the condition of Main Street and the beach prior to the beginning of work, “Just to know what it used to look like in case of any damage.” A barge will also position itself in the Vermilion River next the pier in a manner that will not obstruct river traffic, and it will be lit, appropriate safety lighting approved by the USCG.
A temporary navigational light will be placed on the pier to avoid the issue the city had with the east pier. Work will be suspended during Fish Festival to accommodate fireworks and additional boat traffic. Forthofer said he has applied for a recreational use easement for the West Pier so people can go out there. Law Director Susan Anderson is reviewing the city’s liability. The mayor stressed that unlike the east pier, the surface of the west pier should be more walkable for fishing after completion. He said this all ties in with the Erie County Metroparks to negotiate a damage/use fee from the USACOE, and they are “all in favor of this.”
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