An agreement was announced for emergency dredging at Townsends Inlet in Cape May County, New Jersey, where shifting sand has narrowed the navigational channel beneath the bridge connecting Avalon and Sea Isle City.
Cape May County is contributing $250,000 towards estimated construction costs of $1.5 million. The work is intended to improve passage for recreational and commercial vessels.
The project will use dredging equipment already in the area for Avalon’s beach replenishment work. Congressman Jeff Van Drew said his office is coordinating with governments at the local, state and federal levels on funding, permits and execution. Avalon said the dredge Delaware has been working in the inlet on its beach-fill project.
Before the agreement was announced, Captain Irv Hurd of Miss Avalon told CBS Philadelphia: “We have to go through there at quick speeds, or I'd lose my steering and we can't make it.” He had cancelled five outings because he feared tides or weather could make the channel difficult to negotiate.
The US Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) awarded Norfolk Dredging Company a separate $15.8 million contract in June 2026 for periodic beach nourishment in Avalon and Stone Harbor.
That contract calls for about 941,032 cubic yards (719,000 cubic metres) of sand on Avalon beaches from Ninth to 28th streets and 538,867 cubic yards (412,000 cubic metres) in Stone Harbor.
Sand from Townsends Inlet and Hereford Inlet borrow sites is to be pumped ashore and shaped into dune and berm profiles.
Van Drew said he is also working to have Townsends Inlet evaluated for federal navigation channel status, with the aim of establishing a permanent maintenance plan for the waterway.