Boardwalk a disaster, re-opened in 2013

One of the most startling sights of the massive damage caused by Superstorm Sandy was the collapse of Long Beach’s historic 2.2-mile boardwalk, which was left shredded into planks and even splinters.

The boardwalk, built under the auspices of the New York developer William Reynolds in the early part of the last century, with the help of some elephants who moved huge chunks of wood, had to be repaired rapidly, even if just to give residents a sign that progress against the forces of nature was being made.

Long Beach hired the LiRo Group, an architecture, engineering and construction firm. The cost of repair was estimated at about $40 million. FEMA was to pay 90 percent and New York City, the remainder.

“The City of Long Beach established an aggressive goal of opening the boardwalk to the public as quickly as possible in order to maintain the summer season,” LiRo said in a news release. The firm said that as each section was completed, it was opened to allow residents at least some of the boardwalk.

The firm said it worked with fabricators during design and pre-construction to implement a “unique system of precast panelized superstructure.”

“Protecting the boardwalk against future storm damage also was a concern,” LiRo said, “Several resiliency features were incorporated into the new design.” It was built with a retaining wall and concrete edges in the center of the span.

The boardwalk re-opened Oct. 13, 2013.

The re-opening was held with great fanfare. There was a ribbon-cutting attended by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

Cuomo declared the “boardwalk is better than before.”

“Today the boardwalk is fully reopened, bringing back to the Long Beach community not only an iconic local treasure, but a major tourist attraction that helps support local businesses and jobs,” Cuomo stated. “One year after the flood waters caused so much damage and destruction here on Long Island, the newly restored boardwalk is both a symbol of the resilience and strength of Long Beach as well as the unwavering spirit of the many hard-hit communities across our state that are building back better and stronger than before.”