VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — More sand is on the way to Croatan Beach in Virginia Beach and work should begin next week following some delays.
"You don't want it to be so narrow that people are stepping all over themselves," said Michael Kelly, a Croatan resident.
For over 10 years, Kelly has lived in Croatan. Along with the beauty of beach living comes the destruction storms can bring.
"They literally tear the dunes down, destroy structures out there, like stairways going down to the beach, and so forth," Kelly said.
He expressed relief that Croatan is finally getting a renourishment of sand.
The project entails dredging sand from the Atlantic Ocean channel and bringing it to Virginia Beach for use on the city's beaches.
The first section of the project was the Oceanfront, but it came to an early finish due to the sand quality not meeting requirements and the off-season ending.
Now, the Croatan section has also faced delays; it was originally scheduled to finish in July but is now set to start next week.
"We're happy it's happening, but the timing could not be anything but the worst timing you could pick," said Alan Shaia, who frequently visits Virginia Beach.
He reached out to News 3 because he is now concerned about how the work may impact his family reunion at Croatan.
"I understand that there are delays, but why can't we just postpone it a little bit here?" he asked.
Currently, the project is scheduled to start on July 28 and will be completed in two phases, with a finish date of August 15.
Officials have indicated that part of the reason for the delays was the need for specific equipment.
Residents simply want to see the project finished.
"We hope to get a sufficient amount of sand that will be able to handle the storms as they come," Kelly said.
Earlier this week, the Virginia Aquarium recently discovered a sea turtle nest near some of the renourishment equipment. The nest has been relocated to a safer location and, as of now, should not impact the current project plan.
