THE site of a major landslip at Fingal Bay will be repaired.

Fingal Bay was hit hard during the March 2021 storms and Port Stephens Council has since secured more than $1.8 million to rebuild along Marine Drive.

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The landslip site is dangerous, and a temporary one-way road was put in place to encourage safe beach access whilst the Council sought out funding options for reconstruction.

Mayor Ryan Palmer said that although it’s taken some time, Council is happy to announce the grant funding from the NSW State Government to get this important work underway at Fingal Bay.

“The funding we’ve received will be used to stabilise the embankment on the site and surrounding area.

“It’s a big job and it’ll take time to complete the works, but I know the teams at Council are keen to start and see the repairs complete,” he added.

A section of the roadway at the bend of Marine Drive, near Kiddies Corner, slipped down the embankment onto Fingal Beach in March 2021.

Since then, barricades have restricted access to the site.

Facilities and Service Acting Group Manager Phil Miles said funding from the NSW Government was critical to getting this work done.

“Council does have a small budget for emergency works and infrastructure repairs,” he said.

“However, the impacts of weather events over the past two years have been huge and we just haven’t had enough money to cover the damage,” Mr Miles said.

Mayor Palmer said although Council was thankful for the funding, the March 2022 storms and recent flooding events had caused further damage to infrastructure across Port Stephens.

“The recent natural disasters resulted in extensive damage to our road networks, riverbanks and foreshores.

“On top of already existing damage, the costs to Council and our community continue to increase.

“I’m committed to continuing to advocate for further funding from the Government to support repairs and recovery of sites across our LGA,” he added.

Council will start the detailed design of the repairs and then issue a tender for the works.

The timing of the work will be determined by contractor availability.

By Tara CAMPBELL