Access to the beach at Portage's Lakefront and Riverwalk Park has been closed because of beach erosion. The observation deck collapsed and has yet to be rebuilt. Staff photo by John J. Watkins
Two Northwest Indiana lawmakers are urging Gov. Eric Holcomb to declare a state emergency due to the severe beach erosion along Lake Michigan in Porter and LaPorte counties.
In a letter hand-delivered to the Republican chief executive's office, state Sen. Karen Tallian, D-Ogden Dunes, and state Rep. Pat Boy, D-Michigan City, said the lake's near-record water level and corresponding beach erosion "is threatening both private property and public infrastructure."
"From homes in Ogden Dunes, Dune Acres and Long Beach with failing sea walls, to the lakefront pavilion at Portage beach, to the water lines and gas lines that run under Lake Front Drive in Beverly Shores, there is imminent danger of substantial property loss to our state's citizens," they said.
Tallian and Boy believe an emergency declaration by the governor, in conjunction with already declared local emergencies, could make the state and its residents eligible for disaster assistance through the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as well as help save the Region's lakefront tourism industry.
"Our Indiana Dunes State Park and the Indiana Dunes National Park are some of the most visited parks in Indiana," they said. "The threat of seawalls, roads and even homes falling into Lake Michigan is certainly not conducive to a thriving tourism industry."
Holcomb spokeswoman Rachel Hoffmeyer said the lawmakers' letter is being reviewed.
A similar as yet unfulfilled request for an emergency declaration has been submitted to Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer by 18 Michigan state representatives and senators.
Tallian said the dire beach erosion in Porter County, where the lake dramatically breached a sand dune immediately west of the pavilion at the Portage Lakefront Park and Riverwalk in November, demands urgent state intervention.
"Multiple shoreline communities have already declared states of emergency because of the threatening shoreline erosion," Tallian said. "Your people need your help, governor."
Boy said defending and preserving the lakeshore is vital to the health, safety and economy of Northwest Indiana communities.
"We can and we must do everything in our power to protect the shoreline if we want to protect our communities from future costly states of emergency," Boy said.
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