OCEANSIDE — More than 200 residents attended the first of three workshops on Aug. 29 as part of a design competition to save and retain sand on city beaches.
In partnership with consulting firm GHD and nonprofit Resilient Cities Catalyst, the city has launched its RE:BEACH design competition, bringing together three teams from around the world to develop innovative sand retention pilot projects. Only one team and their winning design will be selected to move into final engineering and permitting at the conclusion of the competition.
The teams – Deltares/MVDRV, SCAPE/ESA and International Coastal Management – each presented a variety of preliminary concepts for wider beaches and sand retention, ranging from off-shore structures to nature-based solutions, based on their knowledge and previous successes around the globe.
Those who attended the beach sand workshop got to meet teams and view presentations on initial ideas to solve the challenges of shoreline erosion in Oceanside.
“One of best parts about the workshop was how freely the community was able to interact with the design teams about various aspects of the presented designs or processes. Most people were there to learn and give feedback on the designs, but there were also technical folks in attendance to learn about solutions that they could bring back to their own jurisdictions,” said Oceanside Coastal Zone Administrator Jayme Timberlake. “I feel a lot of gratitude for everyone who came out and dedicated time to working on this highly local, yet also regional issue.”
For those who missed the first sand retention workshop, a recording and questionnaire are available at www.rebeach.org.The public is invited to provide feedback on each team’s initial concept proposals now through Sept. 30. Each team will review and adapt its design concepts based on received input.
At the next sand retention workshop on Oct. 17, the three teams will present their refined concepts and the community will have a second opportunity to share input to help further hone their designs. The teams will return for a third and final workshop on Dec. 13, when they will present their final designs.
The RE:BEACH jury, comprised of leaders from across North County – experts in coastal dynamics and marine habitats and local community group leaders – will vote to identify a winner or preferred alternative, which will be considered by the Oceanside City Council in January 2024.
“The unique and exciting component of RE:BEACH is that the city of Oceanside is committed to actualizing the winning design alternative,” said Sam Carter, founding principal of Resilient Cities Catalyst. “We’re excited for the outcome of this competition and feel secure in knowing we have the best design firms working to solve this urgent issue.”
“I am impressed with the public turnout at this first workshop and look forward to an open dialogue during the design competition,” said Karen Green, jury member and professional marine biologist.
Green indicated during the jury selection process that she hopes to apply her expertise to help Oceanside select a design that protects sensitive biological resources, enhances ecosystem values, minimizes environmental impacts and is “forward-looking” in terms of cost-effective maintenance and sustainability.
Each of the competition’s design teams must adhere to many requirements in their project designs to ensure beaches to the south of Oceanside are not negatively impacted. Their designs also have to be realistic and fundable, and must provide tertiary benefits like restored habitat, improved beach access and public amenities or other community benefits.
Designers have access to previous engineering efforts by the city to ensure their designs are technically viable in the geographic context. What sets this process apart from more traditional design competition processes is its direct link to the engineering design and permitting phases for construction.
The ultimate outcome of this process will be a shovel-ready sand retention pilot project to be continually managed under the city’s new Coastal Zone Administration.
Learn more about RE:BEACH and sign up for updates by visiting REBEACH.org.
