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Stemming the tide
Housing boom taking its toll on river shorelinesDate published: 3/12/2006 By FRANK DELANO One recent day, Molly Roggero stood on a wide, sandy beach on Mattox Creek near Colonial Beach. The sunlight sparkled a half-mile on the water to the creek's other shore. "When you see a place like this, you understand why people want to live here," she said. Roggero is a marine scientist with the wetlands program of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science. Her job that day was to inspect a shoreline project proposed by Jerome and Patricia LaLonde of Harrisonburg and to report her opinion to the Westmoreland County Wetlands Board. LaLonde developed this waterfront subdivision in 2002. His company bought the 55-acre tract for $874,940 in April, recorded a plat for 17 lots in July, sold most of them in August and grossed $2.4 million. He bought the best lot himself for $219,000. Westmoreland County appraised it last year at $325,000. Its 4 acres descend from a ridge 20 feet above sea level to a grove of trees by the beach. Shoreline erosion has toppled a few large oaks into the water. "I'm a conservationist. My goal is to protect my shoreline and trees from erosion. We're just going by the recommendation of experts. We have no opinion about how this should be done," LaLonde said. On the day Roggero visited the beach, carpenters were finishing up LaLonde's new house on the high ground. At $75 per square foot, county building officials estimated its cost at $556,000. LaLonde said he and his wife plan to move in soon. They have a 48-foot boat in Florida. They want to build a new, 190-foot pier to dock the boat at their new house. They also want to protect their shoreline. For all that, they need permits. The shore where Roggero stood is a complex mix of jurisdictions. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Virginia Marine Resources Commission and the county wetlands board all have some say about what goes on there.
Date published: 3/12/2006
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