JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – A part of the Jacksonville Beach Pier could reopen as soon as April, city leaders tell News4Jax.
The tab for taxpayers: about $700,000.
The coastal centerpiece was closed after it endured a beating from Hurricane Matthew in 2016. And Hurricane Irma in 2017 caused more issues, delaying repairs.
The decks have been replaced and new railings are on the side.
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Engineers have cleared the pier to be used for a couple hundred feet -- or about 17 pilings out.
That news is making many fishermen and beachgoers happy.
“After that storm, they couldn’t even find the pilings. It's amazing that storm did that much damage,” Bill Longenecker said.
Longenecker has lived at the beaches since the 1950s and said he’s seen three piers go down over the years.
“It's very important that we get the pier back open because it's a sign that we are still in business as a community,” Longenecker said.
Hurricane Matthew ripped down about a third of the pier, and then Irma caused even more destruction.
“It’s one of the major draws for our community,” Jacksonville Beach Mayor Charlie Latham said. “I think that there’s a lot of folks that really look forward to using it all year round.”
Latham said he has been pushing to get the pier reopened because it's good for business at the beach.
“Primarily what we're talking about is just a really nice entrance, getting a safe, strong pier, (and then) get it all the way back out to where it was before eventually,” Latham said.
There’s a long way to go to get the pier back to the way it was before the damage.
The city’s still working on plans and funding for that project but beachgoers said they’re happy at least part of the pier will be up and running again.
“That would be great if the pier is open,” Rachel Chesnes said. “I think it is fun to walk out there. I know it's popular for fishing.”
City leaders said they don’t have an exact date on when this part of the pier will reopen but everything appears to be on schedule.