Final Phase Of Port Monmouth Flood Control Will Begin In January

PORT MONMOUTH, NJ — Congressman Frank Pallone (D-NJ 6) was in the Port Monmouth section of Middletown Monday morning to announce that — twelve years after Superstorm Sandy devastated this area — the final phase of the Port Monmouth Storm Risk Reduction Project will begin in January.

This is the final phase of an ongoing $61.8-million project to reduce flooding in Port Monmouth.

Pallone was joined by Middletown Mayor Tony Perry at Port Monmouth Community Church at 11:30 a.m. Monday. Members of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers were also there.

There is already an existing floodwall in Port Monmouth, and now that floodwall will be completed. The existing floodwall runs alongside Old Port Monmouth Road, Main Street and Broadway, among other streets.

The Army Corps of Engineers will also install drainage systems and levees.

The most noticeable part of the final project phase is a new road closure gate will be constructed along Compton Creek between Campbell Avenue and Broadway. (This is to reduce flooding on Broadway.)

Another final part of the project is a floodwall will be built along the backs of a row of properties on Rt. 36. Over the next three years, the public will likely never notice this floodwall is being built, said Perry. That's because the work will all take place in the back of the properties. But that's why Middletown Township has been acquiring the easements of multiple properties along Rt. 36.

The work is expected to start in the first few weeks of January; it will take about three years to complete, said Perry. It will be finished in 2028.

The project is called the Port Monmouth Hurricane and Storm Risk Reduction Project. Here is a full description of the project; much of the work has already been completed.

The contractor that has been doing the work is Anselmi & DeCicco, based in Maplewood. The project was already fully funded in 2013, under the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, which passed Congress in the wake of Superstorm Sandy.

"With this final phase underway, Port Monmouth will finally have the protection it needs for the future," said Pallone. "This is a model for how the federal government can partner with local communities to safeguard our coastline. This isn’t just about flood protection — it’s about restoring security to the Bayshore and ensuring families and businesses don’t live in fear of the next storm."