City moves park road, to tackle beach entrance

The northbound road through Upper Lake Park in Port Washington, which was closed by the city after a portion of the bluff collapsed last month, was to reopen Wednesday afternoon.

A city crew rebuilt less than 100 feet of the road, moving it about 10 feet farther from the edge of the bluff, this week, Public Works Director Rob Vanden Noven said.

The crew paved the street on Tuesday and was expected on Wednesday to stripe it, delineating the pedestrian path from the traffic lane, before opening the road, he said.

That move, Vanden Noven said, was based on a recommendation from Miller Engineers and Scientists of Sheboygan, the city’s consultant for the project, as a way to ensure safety since the bluff “has been creeping toward the road” as it erodes.

Ald. Dan Benning asked if the city was planning to place a snow fence along the bluff in areas where erosion has undercut the edge, noting people have been drawn to the area.

“I’m worried about the undercut areas. I feel like we need to put something up there,” Benning said, so people don’t assume the area is safe.

Vanden Noven said that the city isn’t planning to fence the area but has posted signs warning people to stay back.

Next week, Vanden Noven said, the city crews are expected to begin removing soil and debris that slid from the bluff onto the entrance to the north beach, effectively blocking access to the city’s north shore.

“Some of the soils will be removed. Some will be put in place on the side of the bluff,” he said, adding the work is intended to re-establish a gentler slope that will help stabilize the hillside in that area.

Miller has provided the city with a plan for the work that officials are continuing to evaluate, Vanden Noven said.

The city will also install well points that will help drain water from sand seams in the bluff, he said.

Vanden Noven said he expects the work to take about a week, depending on weather, adding the city’s ultimate goal is to reopen the beach by Memorial Day.

“This is a short-term solution,” Vanden Noven stressed. “We’re regrading a bluff that’s inherently unstable. We went through this just four years ago.”

Given the fact that bluff erosion and bluff slides have become regular occurrences, the city has given the green light to the initial phase of a stabilization project — installing drains along the bluff to help remove water from the sand seams, which hold more water than the surrounding clay. The moist sand acts as a lubricant, making the bluff prone to slumping.

The saturated sand seams are believed to be the reason for last month’s bluff collapse, although officials said they don’t know if the work would have prevented the collapse.

The ultimate bluff stabilization project would also cut back the bluff to create a more stable slope and install a revetment along the base of the bluff to protect it from erosion caused by waves. The revetment would be at least partially buried, making it less obtrusive to people using the beach.

A beach nourishment program, in which sand is added to the beach, is also recommended to improve the quality of the beach and increase its width.