© KRON
Yet another sinkhole has opened up along Beach Boulevard. A snapshot shows the depression in the sidewalk of the Beach Boulevard Promenade that was reported to the city's Department of Public Works on Saturday afternoon.
It was first thought to be 4 feet by 6 feet, but when crews opened it up, they found that the erosion underneath was much larger than that. It was 14 feet by 10 feet, and 8 feet deep, according to Van Ocampo from the public works department. The sinkhole is located right in front of the Pacifica Pier. The hole has now been filled in and patched over. This is the third sinkhole the city has had to deal with.
There were two more at Beach and Paloma that opened up within days of each other in February. And back in January, there was a breach of the seawall that had to be repaired.
And there has been other trouble too. Erosion of the cliffs caused the evacuation of an apartment building further north on Esplanade Avenue. What is behind it all is the strong waves being produced by this El Nino season, pounding the shoreline and, in the case of the sinkholes, eating away the soil underneath the promenade.
Those out enjoying the view on Wednesday said they are not sure what can be done about it. "When mother nature says she wants her land back, she's going to come and get it...," said Tony Martinez, who said he enjoys fishing on the pier.
"I don't know whether it should have been built here originally or not, but clearly, it's wearing out, and if we want to be able to have our beautiful beach walk, we have to maintain it," Pacifica resident Penny Mitchell said.
The city's short-term solution is to find a contractor who can use either sonar or radar technology to try and find the weakness in the roadway before they open up. The long-term solution could involve replacing the entire seawall.
Crews don't have a timeframe for that project, and they don't know where they are going to find the money.
The price tag is estimated to be somewhere around $20 million.
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