This page represents a history of Erosion Control efforts at Fairview Beach.
Photo from January 14, 2022
Riverbank Stabilization Project
2021 – Oct 19
Video of the progress on the FEMA Riverbank project : https://fb.watch/9bsgTI2bR3/
2021 – June 9 – Fredericksburg.com Watch Now, Project Update
2021 – May 26 – King George VA, Riverbank Stabilization drawings
https://www.kinggeorgecountyva.gov/DocumentCenter/View/7307/Fairview-Beach-Riverbank-Stabilization—Select-Drawings
2021 – April 18 – Ground breaking for the FEMA Riverbank Stabilization:
Fredericksburg Today: WATCH: Federal money to help riverbank stabilization at Fairview Beach.
https://fredericksburg.today/2021/04/18/watch-federal-money-to-help-riverbank-stabilization-at-fairview-beach/
2021 – March 31
Hello everyone! We have good news to provide the Fairview Beach community about the FEMA Grant and the Riverbank Stabilization project. Approximately five years after the application was filed with FEMA, the grant has been approved and the project is on track to begin soon. I want to take this opportunity to give a HUGE shoutout to Mike Bennett, Tom Hudson and all the other folks who have worked tirelessly on bringing this project to fruition! It has been a long and winding road.
King George County has contracted with Finish Line Environmental, a King George company, to construct the project. We will be the beneficiaries of almost $2 million in Government funding for the project. Before construction begins, there are several issues we want to make everyone aware of:
1. The tentative date for ground-breaking is April 16th. Construction should start the following week. That date is tentative because Finish Line is completing another project and weather delays could impact the start date for the Fairview beach project.
2. The project is expected to take approximately 9 months to complete. This means construction will likely continue through December 2021. Again, that schedule is contingent on weather – lots of rain or bad weather could cause the project to take longer to complete.
3. During construction, the beaches from 1st Street to 5th Street will be closed, both by land or by water. Boats, jet skis (personal watercraft), kayaks and any other water vehicles should avoid approaching the shore at the construction site from the river.
4. There will be construction vehicles in the area of Fairview Drive, especially from 1st Street through 5th Street. The area will not be closed to cars and golf carts (except possibly for short, temporary periods). However, for safety reasons, we have been asked to notify the community that children, dog walkers, pedestrians and bicycles should avoid this area when construction is ongoing. Pedestrians, children, bike riders, and dogs are at risk because they may be difficult to see for the construction vehicle drivers. Always assume that an equipment operator or driver cannot see you!!
5. Construction hours will be approximately 7 am to 5:30 pm, Monday through Friday. Weekend construction work is not expected
2020- Nov 1st
GOOD NEWS! The FEMA grant has been approved for the riverbank stabilization project. The King George office of Procurement will now take action to finalize the request for bid (RFB), publish the RFB, select the contractor and make contract award. This is not a fast process but we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! Fingers crossed construction will hopefully begin sometime next Spring. We will let everyone know when the start of construction is closer. There will more than likely be some disruption to traffic along Fairview Drive, but we will get the details out as quickly as we can when the time comes. Once this project is complete, we can all breathe much easier. It has been a years-long process just to get to this point. Huge kudos and thanks go to those who have worked so diligently over the years to make this happen. I want to thank Mike Bennett for all his efforts on the FEMA grant. I also want to recognize all those who have been working on Fairview Beach erosion issues for many, many years, especially Tom Hudson. Many thanks to all!
2020- May 12
Since we haven’t been able to have our usual meetings, I want to let everyone know the status of the FEMA grant for the Fairview Beach Riverbank Stabilization Plan. The good news is that the grant approval process continues to move forward. The bad news is that it looks like it could be another 6 – 8 months to complete all the required actions so that construction can start. This means that the earliest possible date to begin construction would probably be between November 2020 and January 2021. As a practical matter, since construction probably won’t start in winter, we may be looking at construction starting in spring of 2021. If you are interested in knowing the details of what still has to occur, I’ll provide the specifics below.
The grant requires an environmental assessment (EA) before any funds can be released. Schnabel Engineering, King George County’s engineering firm. has been working with FEMA to try to get the EA completed. The last Federal agency to weigh in, the National Marine Fisheries Service, signed off in early February. Schnabel has sent FEMA several drafts of the EA report in February, March and April. I mistakenly thought that FEMA had approved the EA in April after twice reviewing the draft report.
FEMA still has to send its latest comments to Schnabel. Estimated time – 1 week.
Schnabel will make the required changes and send it back to FEMA for, hopefully, final approval. – Estimated time – 1 week.
FEMA will send the final approved version of the EA for legal review and approval. Estimated time – 2 weeks.
FEMA then must format the document and send it to External Affairs. They issue a press release and publish the EA online for a 30 day public comment period. Estimated time – 6-7 weeks
FEMA will respond to any public comments. If there isn’t anything “too concerning,” they can “finalize all the documents” and wrap up responses to the comments. Estimated time – 2-3 weeks.
Total estimated time to complete FEMA process and release grant funds – 3-4 months.
King George County can then issue an IFB (invitation for bids) for construction of the project. Estimated time – 8 -10 weeks. (2-3 weeks to prepare, 30 days for responses from construction companies, 2-3 weeks to review proposals and choose contractor.)
King George Co. Board of Supervisors then must approve the contract and authorize funds to pay the construction contractor. Even though FEMA will reimburse the county, the county has to pay the contractor first and then seek reimbursement. Supervisors meet twice each month – estimated time – 30 days.
Total estimated time from now to start of construction – 6 – 8 months.
I worked for the U.S Department of Veterans Affairs so I have experience with Federal bureaucratic craziness but this process is pretty frustrating. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at mike.mb.bennett@gmail.com.
Mike Bennett
2019- September
FEMA Still bogged down as 3 agencies still have to take action. We now have permit for beach restoration that is good through 2023.
2019- May (Through Sept) – FBRA Residents vote to submit for a second grant for beach replenishment. Bayshore drawings are to be used to apply for a beach replenishment permit with applicable agencies. This grant was eventually turned down, however, the permits are approved. Minutes from May meeting, Bayshore Page 1, Bayshore Page 2.
2019- February. For results from the February 9th meeting described below, please see the MINUTES from that meeting.
2019- January, Email from Mike Bennett:
The Fairview Beach Residents Association will have a special meeting on February 9, 2019 at 10 am in the FVB firehouse. FBRA bylaws require 14 days advance notice for a special meeting. A special meeting is needed because our next regularly scheduled meeting will not take place until April. The meeting is needed to take immediate action on the community response to the riverbank stabilization plan.
Everyone in Fairview Beach is invited to this meeting. You do not have to be a member of FBRA to attend. However, in order to vote at an FBRA meeting, you do have to be a member so if you want to vote, you must have paid your dues by February 9. This is not intended to be a membership drive, but you need to know the rules before the meeting. (If you want to pay online, go to the FairviewBeach.org website and look under Fundraising for how to pay online. Or you can pay before the meeting.)
Here’s the situation in a nutshell: On December 15, the Fairview Beach LLC held a meeting to discuss the details of the riverbank stabilization plan that was designed in connection with King George County’s application for a FEMA grant to protect Fairview Beach from further erosion along Fairview Drive. As previously reported, while this design will save the road, the sewage lines and the houses that are at risk, unfortunately the plan will also result in the loss of much of our beaches.
At the December 15 LLC meeting, the LLC (which is the owner of the waterfront property from Fairview Drive/First Street to Fifth St.) wanted to make sure the residents most affected were aware of the design and that there was a consensus that the LLC would move forward on the plan with the understanding that FBRA and the Fairview Beach residents would take action to try to restore or replenish the beaches.
The approach moving forward will involve getting a design from Bayshore Designs to build up the beaches primarily with groins and breakwaters. We will have a proposal for the costs of such a design for approval in February. Tom Hudson, the manager of the LLC, and I have met with King George County officials to coordinate our efforts with them. Tom and I are also meeting with Bayshore to let them know exactly what we are looking for in a design.
On February 9, I have been asked to again go over the details of the grant and the design and we will decide exactly how we plan to move forward to try to restore our beaches. Hope you can make it on February 9.
Mike Bennett
2018-Dec 10
Mike Bennett summarized the work done on the river stabilization project as of December 10th. Please read the RIVERBANK STABILIZATION PLAN to see the next steps.
2018-June 19, Email from Mike Bennett:
All – On Tuesday night, the King George County Board of Supervisors approved the award of a contract for Phase I of the FEMA grant. This also requires the County to appropriate $300,000 for the contract with the engineering firm that will do the design and engineering for the erosion control plan. The County awarded the contract Wednesday morning (to Schnabel Engineering with Wilson Engineers supporting). As soon as the details of the contract are made public, I’ll share them with you.
FEMA has now officially (in writing) approved Phase I and the grant agreements have been signed. As we have previously discussed, FEMA will pay $230,193 (75%), VDEM will pay $61,385 (20%) and King George County will fund the remaining $15,346 via a match (services). King George will initially pay all of the invoices and then be reimbursed for all of the expenditures but it still has to set aside $300,000 from its own funds for the total amount of the contract. So, the County won’t end up paying any of the costs of the contract in cash but it is still setting aside a large amount of money for the project.
The contractor now has 120 days to design the erosion control plan. So, their plan is due approximately October 20, 2018. That plan then goes to FEMA for final approval and then the process begins for Phase II, construction.
A lot of people in King George County did a tremendous amount of work and gave us a tremendous amount of support. They deserve our thanks and I’ll send them an email expressing our appreciation and gratitude. I’ll send you a copy of my email.
All of the relevant documents that were made public at the meeting and are listed here: Fairview Beach Stabilization Project
Great news for Fairview Beach!
2018- March 29
King George Solicitation for the Design of the FEMA Grant Project announced.
The solicitation is comprised of four attachments:
04262018-1400 RFP Final
Attch B FVB_FEMA_Application_Complete
Attch C fairview beach riverbank stabilization project – grant agreement
04262018-1400 Addendum 1
2018- March 23
Please see link to 3/23/2018 article, “King George would pay for its share of Fairview Beach project with staff time”.
2018-March 8, Email from Mike Bennett:
This morning I attended a meeting with various King George County and Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) officials about the FEMA grant for the Fairview Beach erosion project. Here’s the great news I learned today: THERE IS A GOOD CHANCE THAT WE, THE RESIDENTS OF FAIRVIEW BEACH, WILL NOT HAVE TO PAY ANYTHING FOR THE ENTIRE PROJECT, INCLUDING BOTH DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION. I know there are no guarantees in life but this is incredibly good news.
Here are the details.
Under the FEMA grant, the Federal government pays 75%, both for design (Phase 1) and construction (Phase 2). The State of Virginia (VDEM) has agreed to pay 20% of both design and construction. We knew VDEM was going to pay 20% of the design phase but we weren’t sure that VDEM would pay the entire 20% share on the construction part of the project so this is also great news. The remaining 5% share is the responsibility of King George County.
The other great news is that the 5% local share does not have to be in cash. King George County, in other words, can satisfy the 5% local share with “in-kind matching.” So, King George can get credit under the grant for various services they provide to the project. For example, if King George County provides engineering services (there were 3 KG County engineers at the meeting today, all of whom will be working on the project), the value of those services can be calculated and can satisfy the 5% local share.
The KG County officials at the meeting were very knowledgeable about and experienced with in kind matching. Other services that may be utilized for the in kind matching would include construction management, procurement, and inspections. County officials were confident that their services will cover the entire local share.
There was even more good news. While it is true that FEMA has only approved Phase 1 so far, over $2 million in Federal funds have already been set aside. This means that FEMA has already set aside the money to cover the 75% Federal share of Phase 2, the construction portion of the project. The Phase 2 portion of the grant will likely be approved once FEMA has the opportunity to review the design.
As I said earlier, there are no guarantees but, so far, things are looking really, really good. As meetings go, I’d have to say, this one was one of the best.
Mike
2018-February, Statement from Mike Bennett:
We wanted to let everyone know that we have been advised that the FEMA grant to fix the erosion at Fairview Beach has been approved by the Federal government. At this point, the grant is for Phase 1 of the project, the engineering design and study, but you can’t get to Phase 2 without approval for Phase 1 and we now have that.
We don’t have all the details at this point but we will be sharing them as we know more. We just wanted to share the good news with everyone right away.
2017-September
Mike said he has had 6 meetings since Wednesday. The FEMA grant is still alive, but they are very busy right now with disaster relief regarding all the hurricane activity lately. As he understands it the money KG County applied for was already set aside. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) made site visit on Thursday. Mike, Don P, Tom Hudson, Connie. Gallahan and Joy Ellis attended for FBRA and the LLC. Several KG County officials were also present. USACE personnel included a Marine biologist, several engineers, and a botanist. Because of the very high tides this week there wasn’t much beach and some of the KG Co. visitors were not dressed for walking the beach, but it was better for them to see it. Process is very complicated and we do not have the entire timeline yet, but right now there is $25,000 set aside for the Federal Interest Determination. We would prefer FEMA because it’s a better deal financially and less money on the local side. Feds pay 75% under FEMA under Army Corps they pay 65%. Oct. 1st when new fiscal year starts, USACE will get another $25,000 for the Federal Interest Determination. They look at the road, sewer line and houses that would be lost in a catastrophic event. It’s public infrastructure, we’re not asking to fix beaches but the public road, sewer line and to protect the houses. We have some designs from Bayshore to fix the beaches ourselves later but USACE might put the retaining walls out into the river which had not been said before. They’ll get back to us with schedule and plan. VDOT was not represented and local representative couldn’t be contacted in time. Post walk thru the County Administrator said he’ll get in touch with VDOT. Drainage is a separate issue for USACE. Must control water coming down from 218 or we will still have problems. County has been very helpful, and we hope to have an answer soon on FEMA grant. Terry said that we are the no. 1 project in Virginia, so the prospect is very good that the FEMA award will go to us. Mike said that the money we paid to Bayshore for their study was money well spent because we provided that to FEMA, the USACE and King George County.
2017-August
FEMA grant is still alive and we should know something by Labor Day. Army Corps recently picked up the Fairview Beach erosion project also, and like the FEMA grant, they are through the county, not FVB. $25,000 has been allotted by the Army Corps for the federal interest determination and they are coming for a tour in the near future. Mike named several county officials who plan to join in that tour. The feasibility study will be further down the road. So right now we are going down two parallel tracks and the first one that takes on the task we will go with. Mike mentioned that the groin between 6135 and 6139 Potomac Ave. is failing. The permit for the groins project a few years back has expired. Tom, Terry, Don and Mike will go check on the groin after today’s meeting to see if it needs repair or replacement. We’ll report back next meeting. Regarding the Potomac River beach signs, Don said that at least one of the signs is torn and they should all be checked, which they will also do on Saturday. Mike said the No Diving signs on the pier are very faded.
2017-June
FEMA Grant Update – On June 2, Mike Bennett, Don Pfalzgraf, Terry O’Toole took 3 members of the Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM) for a tour of the erosion at FVB. Mike stated that Dr. Niemann Young (KG new County Administrator), Chris Thomas, Steve Lynd, and Chris Werle participated in the tour as well. Mike went on to say that FEMA may want a tour as well. Mike had the opportunity to meet with Margaret Ransone, our State Representative, and explained the situation of FVB erosion, to which she was unaware, and asked about requesting State funding for this project if we are selected, she said that was a possibility. The funding is 75% FEMA and 25% State and Local (State up to 15% and Local 10%). Mike offered to give Margaret Ransone a tour as well and stated that the decision on the FEMA Grant is likely going to be late summer or early fall.
2017-May
FEMA Grant Update – Mike stated County contacted the state and the budget issues in DC are not affected by the FEMA Grant. There is $10 million set aside for VA. There is a new person in charge of Virginia Department of Emergency Management (VDEM). Mike will be hosting a FVB tour on 6/2/17 for the new person and possibly two additional people from VDEM along with Steve Lynd and Chris Werle of KG County. This seems to be a positive for our erosion project. Last year, the land between the road and the bank (between 4th and 5th Streets) measured 9’6” and 6’7” at 2 nd Street. Last week, at 4th Street, it measured 8’10”; we have lost 8” since last measurement. The tour given to Kathy Dyson last year resulted in positive reporting/article for FVB in The Free-Lance Star. The limit on the grant is $3 million; we hope to have an answer for early summer.
2017- April
Update on the FEMA Grant and Erosion Project – Mike stated that, since Congress cannot pass a budget, the Army Corps of Engineers hasn’t had an approved budget for 2015 or 2016. Therefore the KG County request for a feasibility study for our erosion problem is still on hold. The FEMA grant is different. This is not OUR project but it is also a King George county project. That grant is based on the snow storm of January 2016 when there was a state of emergency, which only affected the MidAtlantic states, and only those states may apply for this grant. That money has already been appropriated. When our application was reviewed by the evaluation committee, it was ranked #1 in Virginia. We don’t know if it was ranked #1 when it went to the federal government. If it is granted, it will cover 75% of the costs and the local share will be 25%. The state can pay up to 15% but we don’t know if they will. The county share is whatever part of the 25% the state does not pay. The county share therefore will be somewhere between 10% – 25%. With the Army Corps, the government pays 65% and local share is 35%. Last year we discussed a special tax district to cover the 35%. The agreement with the Board of Supervisors was that we would get to vote on it, but two of those supervisors are no longer serving on the Board so that agreement/understanding is now moot. The FEMA grant is different because our share will be at least 10% less (25% max vs. 35%). Mike feels the local share will be funded by a local tax district and we will have no say or vote on this, but we want to be as helpful as we can in trying to get the state of Virginia to pay up to 15%, if possible. This would include writing to our state representative and state senator. Also, we will seek the governor’s help. We have a sewer system and a road that will end up in the river if not fixed, and that is part of county infrastructure and their responsibility. Terry O’Toole stated that there is significant support for this project. It was pointed out that the river is in Maryland, but Mike stated that they do not have any interest in helping, since the problem is on Virginia land. If we can get this grant, we will not need so much fundraising. Jay Steiner asked if we have any dates. Mike said we should hear by late spring or early summer.
October, 2015
King George County officially requests assistance from the Army Corp of Engineers to tackle erosion problem- please see article from Free Lance-Star.
July, 2015
Please see the Detailed Erosion Plan for the erosion project effective July,2015.
February 16, 2015
Please see the Status of Erosion Project 02-16-2015
Specific details are listed below, listing the most current events first.
January 25, 2015
Bayshore has provided two invoices with the following work being either completed or in progress:
Invoice #14135 (FVB #1) dated 12/1/14-
-Study previous 2009 site work and plans produced
-Add to base subdivision plan those lots west of Second St and east of Third St.
-Site work on 11/5, 11/12, 11/22, and 11/29/14 attempt to locate previous working points, set new baseline working points on Fairview Drive from First St. to east of Fifth.
-Locate property corners along Third St. to align baseline to subdivision lots.
-Measure drop inlet and elevations across from Fairview Dr west of First St.
-Measure drainage culvert and drainageway elevations across Fairview Dr from drop inlet.
Some residents showed up to clear the brush from the area of the drainage ditch along Fairview Dr to enable surveying.
Invoice #1 cost $3,373.67
Invoice #15001 (FVB#2) dated 1/2/15
-Site work 12/4, 12/12/ 12/15, 12/17, 12/19, 12/26, and 12/31/14.
-Continuation of site measurements to prepare existing conditions site plan.
-The site work is nearly complete
Invoice #2 cost $6,512.25
$56,355.00 has been set aside for the engineering and $9885.92 has been disbursed to date.
Jan 24, 2015
Bayshore had discussions with VDOT David Brown on January 20th concerning the boundaries for Fairview Dr and they all agreed that there are none. Does not impact the project but would be a good reference point.
Tom Hudson reviewed the draft drawings that Bayshore had on site Jan 24 while they working with the county on sewage line geometry and they look pretty good with all of the data points and topro. The next step is to work the beach and remedies.
January 1, 2015
Bayshore has completed all of the survey data points and they are now researching
documentation they have in house from the 3rd St construction. The actual engineering will be taking place this month.
November 2014
FBRA has voted to hire Bayshore Engineering to develop engineering drawings for construction of shoreline protection and street runoff on the beach front.
King George County has agreed to act as the FBRA sponsor to apply for a grant with the Army Corp of Engineers.
April 2014
Additional real estate has fallen into the river between Fourth and Fifth Streets, in addition a small piece has broken loose on Second St.
We are currently renewing our efforts to find ways to raise the funds to repair and install preventative efforts to resolve the erosion problems. Some of the problems are from street run off and not having adequate room to install proper drainage ditches along each street. Repairing the bank and installing drop inlets with the water directed into them will resolve most of the problems. The key to stopping the bank from caving is to get to a 2:1 slope as desired by VMRC. We need some serious fund raising projects to get this effort going and in the mean time we will be working to find alternative funding. We cannot count on outside help! A few years ago FBRA members raised and donated enough money to repair 200 feet of bank, install 5 rock groins, two break waters, install steps on Third St, in addition 5 wooden groins were installed. The cost of all of this work was over $100K so it can be done. The people that raised the funds to accomplish all of this worked hard giving up personal time and work time to make the effort work. We need all of the residents to come up with fund raising ideas and present them to the FBRA. We hope that we can survive another hurricane season without additional damage. Please contact Tom Hudson @540-775-5934 to discuss
2013-
The groins mentioned below were completed. There were some problems with one of the groins, but they were corrected.
July 11, 2012-
As authorized at the June meeting of the FBRA, the contractor, Potomac Piledriver, has started construction on the groins project between 7th and 10th streets. The pre-construction meeting was held last week with KG County and VMRC has authorized us to proceed. Supplies were delivered earlier this week to the 8th St. boat ramp and yesterday the old groins were removed. Despite our best efforts, there will likely be some disruption at the boat ramp while construction is going on. We are making every effort to minimize the disruption and to keep the boat ramp as clear as possible. Depending on the weather, we hope construction will be completed in about a week.
December 10, 2011-
The Erosion Committee met with FBRA residents to discuss the groin project in Fairview Village, and to address any questions that the residents might have. Click here to review minutes from the meeting.
There were two handouts. One was a copy of the final drawings that Bayshore Design completed for FBRA. The other handout was a series of slides explaining the approval chain for the work and the process of groin installation.
October 2011- Grant with Army Corp not possible without giving the entire beach to the County to qualify.
September 2011-
Army Corp tells F.B.R.A. officers that the bank to be stabilized is not considered to be publicly owned. To qualify for a grant to stabilize the bank , a public entity such as King George County would need to acquire the lands in fee or obtain a permanent and irrevocable easement.
FBRA denied grant for bank stabilization from National Fish & Wildlife Foundation. We’ll try to find out why, and reapply for 2012.
July 23, 2011
Still waiting on word from National Fish & Wildlife Foundation on whether we will receive a grant to continue work on the bank between 3rd and 5th Streets. Results will be announced in September.
An application for another possible grant with the Army Corp of Engineers has not yet been submitted by our sponsor- the County. There might be a stipulation that Fairview Beach must have public access. If that is true, then we will not file the application.
The Fairview Beach Residents’ Association voted to pay Bayshore Design up to $3,400 to prepare a design for reengineering the groins between 7th and 12th Streets. The work will be completed in about six weeks. $2,000 has already been earmarked to do the actual work.
June 3, 2011-
FBRA submitted the application described below. If awarded the grant, we would be able to stabilize up to 500 additional feet between Third and Sixth Streets.
May 2011-
FBRA was notified by the Department of Conservation and Recreation that we might qualify for a Small Watershed Grant awared by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF). It appears that we do qualify for a grant up to $200K. The Erosion Committee is in the process of preparing the applicaton prior to the June 3 deadline.
April 2011-
King George County has drafted a letter to the Corp of Engineers on behalf of FBRA’s request for a grant. FBRA needs the County as a sponsor to qualify.
FBRA was notified by the Division of Conserveration and Research that the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will be awarding grants between $20K and $200K. It appears that we qualify, and we do not need a sponsor. We plan to submit an application by the June 3rd deadline.
Tom Hudson has received an estimate of $4K plus permits to rebuild the steps at 3rd Street. The FBRA approved up to $5K at the 4/23/11 meeting.
December 2010 – Phase 3 Status
Phase 3 of the erosion project pertains to extending the erosion wall and repairing the steps at 1st Street. Althgouh we do not have enough funds to proceed on the wall, we are currently seeking a grant from the Corp of Engineers. In order to obtain that grant, we need a qualified sponsor, and we are working with King George County to become that sponsor.
Tom Hudson is contacting several people to get estaimtes on the cost of the stairs.
Althought Phase 2 is considered to be completed, there are still two minor items to address. One of the hex boxes still needs be replaced, and we still need to have KG inspect the site once the grass grows back on the bank. At that point, we should be reimbursed money that was held in bond.
November 21, 2010- Phase 2 of erosion project completed
Note from Tom Hudson:
Mike Shrewsbury completed the work on Third Street Sunday. On Tuesday Don and Jim Holley put the finishing touches on the disturbed area by planting grass, putting down straw and laying down netting. We have had a lot of people involved throughout this project so please make sure you thank all of them when you see them including those workers behind the scenes. We also had 15 planters plant the new plants and work on the area the weekend before. As soon as the grass starts coming through we will have KG inspect the site.
September 2, 2010
Volunteers fortified the top of the bank at 3rd street will bales of straw to prevent erosion from the pending hurricanes this season. The bales should divert rainwater towards the drain hole at 3rd street, until a more permanent berm is put in place.
August 28th, 2010
After several setbacks with equipment, etc, Mike Shrewsbury is poised to replace the broken hex boxes as soon the tide is low enough. The new hex boxes are in place, and the equipment is at the water’s edge.
Once the new hex boxes are installed, we will need to do some more work on the bank. We need to concentrate on the “good” kind of grass, repair some run offs, and divert water flow to prevent erosion on the bank.
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EQUIPMENT IN FOREGROUND, NEW HEX BOXES BACKGROUND
July 1, 2010
Diamond Cut, Inc met with F.B.R.A. officials yesterday, and determined that the shurbs had been overwatered. They dug down and found muddy soil. We will make adjustments to the watering schedule.
June 28, 2010
Although the buses were doing just fine through mid June, the abnormally hot weather has finally taken a toll, About 65% of the plants are brown.
On top of that, evertime we repair the bank, a severe storm has caused more damage.
May 12, 2010
Grass has started to grow on the erosion bank. Although nature has not helped us with much rain, Don Pfalzgraf, Janet Harrover, and others have faithfully watered the area with sprinklers. Thanks to them.
We certainly appreciate those who have authorized us to use their water, in particular, Gary & Margaret Tanner, Staci Harvey & Jim Decker, and Sara Gaines.
We ARE going to be successful!
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April 23, 2010
We had a little bad luck. Unfortunately, extraordinary high winds blew most of the straw off the bank.
The FVB board members voted unanimously to hyrdo seed the bank to increase the chances of growing grass. (The landscaper actually hydro seeded all of the flat area as well with no extra charge).
The County is holding a bond of $5,000, which will be returned to us when grass begins to grow.
The hex boxes have not been replaced yet.
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April 16th, 2010
Diamond Cut Landscaping planted the shrubs and grass seed today, and covered the bank with straw. See pictures below.
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April 14th, 2010
The bank grading above the 200 foot wall has been completed. Plants, etc will be added the week of April 19th if everything goes according to plan. Correction: neither one of the two hex boxes has been replaced yet. However, both hex boxes are at the site, and a path has been left to transport them into the river.
March 27th, 2010
The 200 foot erosion wall has been completed, and one of the two cracked hex boxes has been replaced. We need to replace the other hex box, finish grading the bank, and plant the grass and shrubs.
March 15th, 2010
Mike Shrewsbury is certainly having a rough time with the erosion project on 2nd and 3rd streets. The rain, wind, and high tides have really slowed them down. The high tides have brought in a lot of trash.
Some of the equipment broke, and the welding truck was there 2 days. They needed 3 more sections and they delivered the wrong ones.
Also, the building inspector (Heather) came and had a problem with the filter fence and the rocks that Mike had removed from the banks and the beach. The rocks may have to be hauled away.
February 17, 2010
Mike Shrewsberry (River House Enterprises) has started on the walls. He has encountered some issues with “cluster rock” which is rock that is either in the bank or buried creating issues for wall leverage. However, he will shave the rock to establish a level base for the wall. Mike will also replace the two hex boxes that have cracked since installation. The project should be completed within two weeks
January 23, 2010
The equipment and supplies are on site to begin construction of the wall. It shouldn’t be much longer.
December, 2009
We just need a dry bank and very low tide.
November, 2009
We received the permit on October 6, 2010. After years of work, literally, everything is finally set to build the first segment (200 feet) of the erosion wall. We’re just waiting for the tide to cooperate.
September 26, 2009
The FBRA voted to transfer treasury money from general fund and golf cart fund to the erosion fund. Although the Association had to spend more money than anticipated for planning, bonding, etc, it appears that we do have enough funds to build the wall.
September 15, 2009
VDOT approved the revised plan and sent an acceptance letter to Tom Hudson. This was a huge step forward. To our knowledge, we have now satisified all demands imposed upon us by anybody involved…VIMS, VMRC, K.G. County, VDOT, etc.
We are in the process of securing a bond for this project. The F.B.R.A. will have to committ $11,000 for the duration of the project. We expect to have this done within the next week or so.
We only have two items to complete before we can begin construction: deed of dedication and a construction permit.
August, 2009
Bayshore Design incorporated changes to the plan and forwarded these to VDOT. Unfortunately, VDOT has asked for more changes. We are waiting for Bayshore to let us know what they think needs to be done.
June 11, 2009
F.B.R.A. officials met with VDOT, Bayshore Design, and K.G. County to discuss VDOT’s comments on the current plan. It would be quite expensive if we have to abide by all of their recommendations.
It appears that we may have a compromise. However, Bayshore will have to update the plan to incorporate changes, and the plan will have to be resubmitted to VDOT for approval. If we get VDOT’s approval, then we need to get the County’s approval. Jack Green (from the County) once said he would approve the plan if VDOT approves the plan. Let’s hope that is true.
May, 2009
Jack Green from the County will issue the permit only if the project is approved by VDOT. Upon inspection of the site and drawings, VDOT has identified things that don’t meet current standards. It is not yet clear if upgrades (at our expense) are necessary to have the plan approved.
April 22, 2009
An on-site meeting took place today by most of the decision makers who can approve the wall that we wish to build for erosion control. A couple of minor adjustements were made, and it now appears that we only have to update the drawings. Hopefully we will have the permit soon!
Week of March 23, 2009
You might remember that the County asked us to confirm the depth of the force main before approving our plan to proceed with the wall (see note below for March 2nd). Mike Shrewsbury found the pipe, which was approximately three feet underground. County officials should inspect this soon.
March 9, 2009
Tom Hudson and Herb Cover spoke with Congressman Robb Wittman about finding money for the erosion project. You might remember that the Association had met with Congresswoman Davis in 2006, but little progress was made due to her death.
Wittman vowed to pick up where Davis left off. His staff will try these avenues: 1. Corp of Engineers- there are stimulus dollars that might be available for our needs
2. Department of Transportation- there may be dollars available to avoid road loss
3. Environmental Protection Agency- possible dollars to avoid sewer loss
Robb also said that he would put a priority on the state stimulus pot from which we requested funds.
March 2, 2009
Bayshore Design completed preliminary drawings for the project, and shared them with Chris Thomas of the K.G. Service Authority. Chris said that we needed to confirm the depth of the force main pipe. That means we need to dig down about 5 feet at our cost.
January 15, 2009
The F.B.R.A. unanimously approved a contract with Bayshore Design LLC to provide topograpic drawings, etc that will satisfy the County’s requirements. The project is expected to cost between $4k and $6K, and should begin in February.
January 8, 2009
A proposal to modify the overall plan to satisfy Couny requirements was received from Bay Shore Design on January 8th. The estimate was lower than that received by Angler. A board meeting will be held January 15th to discuss it.
December 23, 2008
F.B.R.A. has submitted requirements for modifying the plan as needed to Bay Shore Design in Northern Neck. It is hoped that their price will beat that of Angler (see below).
December 17, 2008
Tom Hudson received a proposal from Angler to do the work as described at the meeing on Dec 10th (see below). The estimated cost was more than expected at $8,100 plus. Other possibilities are being discussed.
December 10, 2008
This was a follow-up to the meeting that was held on November 20th (see below). Attendees were present from F.B.R.A., Angler (a certififed enginnering firm), and Community Development.
Angler seemed to understand how they needed to modify our plan to meet the approval of the County. They will give us an estimate soon. Since they provided us with the drawings, etc, we are hoping that most of the work has been done.
November 20, 2008
F.B.R.A. represenatives met with Community Development as scheduled. Jack Green made it clear that our plans for the first section of wall required a stamp of approval from a professional engineer. The engineer would work closely with F.B.R.A and Community Development to address topographical issues, ground cover, etc. Our next step would be to select an engineer.
November, 2008
Community Development has specified that a private engineering firm needs to draw up plans for the first wall section. A meeting will be held with Jack Green on Thursday, Nov 20th, to discuss.
October, 2008
A permit application to build the first wall between 2nd and 3rd Streets was sent to Community Development on October 13th. Results of the application will be posted here upon receipt.
July, 2008.
Phase 2 of erosion control pertains to fortifying the banks along the river with several walls. The last estimate we had was in the neighborhood of $375K for everything
The first wall will be constructed between 2nd and 3rd streets (see picture below).
beach003.jpg
Click here to see the diagram/plan for the bulkhead.
Click here to see the diagram/plan for the LWall cross-section.