Cr Jules Radich sent a motion notice to the council meeting on Thursday, claiming that the repaired wooden groyne would “regain the beach” and that the cost would be relatively low.
His campaign has historically struggled to find support in the council, and the defense of previous trials has been defeated.
However, St. Clair’s Esplanade companies are united to uphold the cause, and the petition has more than 4,600 signatures.
According to Cr Radich, the estimated cost of building a timber groyne was $ 150,000, and the consent cost was expected to exceed $ 15,000.
Annual maintenance ranges from $ 30,000 to $ 60,000 and monitoring costs can be around $ 7,500 per year.
He said the use of Aurora Energy hardwood utility poles could reduce costs.
Cr Radich is leading a campaign ticket called Team Dunedin on behalf of Mayor of Dunedin this year.
This winter, the beach has been devastated again, leaving only one of the poles that formed part of the loose groyne standing.
In the material accompanying his notice, Cr Radich argued that community voices urged the restoration of groynes.
He said the barriers to reinstatement were largely political, not practical, and the previous facility was of great success.
In February, the Dunedin City Council adopted an extensive plan on how to manage the coast from St. Clair to St. Kilda.
It focused on a philosophical approach after extensive engagement with the community, rather than identifying a particular technique.
Cr Radich said at the time that he was able to see how St Clair’s groyne fits into the council’s plans.
He argued in a document submitted to the council meeting Thursday that groynes were included in the coastal plan and that they would make the coast more resilient.
He said they would work in St. Clair because the sand tends to move in both directions along the shore.
Post-hoc management approaches, such as the use of geobags, were rarely achieved in the face of erosion and sea level rise, he said.
“It’s time to move away from this reactive approach and embark on the simplest, cheapest and only proven St. Clair sand retention mechanism included in the coastal program.”
Cr Radich said the petition was the community’s greatest reaction to everything in the coastal program effort.
He said the sand was eroded in St. Clair by a winter storm and accumulated in the summer.
“Groyne simply traps more summer sand, so the beach is higher than it would be without it.”
Some of his arguments, such as experts agreeing that groyne works well in St. Clair, could be challenged at the conference.
ECoast oceanographer Ed Atkin said the erosion was primarily due to the direct movement of sand offshore during storms, making it unsustainable to consider groyne as a long-term solution to temporary erosion. ..