ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) -- Atlantic City is finally getting a beach replenishment project that casinos say is essential for visitors who have had precious little space to spread their towels for two sand-starved summers.

Work is under way on a project by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to widen beaches in Atlantic City and some neighboring shore towns. It will place 1.2 million cubic yards of sand on the shoreline -- enough to fill as many as 120,000 dump trucks -- to make up for losses from normal tides as well as stronger, more frequent storms fueled by climate change.

Atlantic City last received beach replenishment in 2020, and was due for additional sand in 2023. But Congress failed to approve funding for the project then, and the $38.2 million in funding that came through this year was too late for this summer.

While the project should have wider beaches in place for next summer's tourism season, the lack of sand has hurt business the past two years. Resorts Casino Hotel has had a usable beach every year except this one, said Mark Giannantonio, the casino's president.

"You have thousands of people here on a nice summer day and there's no beach for them to go on," he said. "It affects every business from the largest casino to the smallest pizzeria."

The Hard Rock, Ocean and Resorts casinos are in the most heavily eroded section of Atlantic City's beach and they pushed federal officials to expedite the project.

In 2023, Ocean decided it simply couldn't wait any longer, and spent $600,000 of its own money to truck sand onto the beach in front of the casino.

But that sand quickly washed away, and Ocean's beach was even smaller this summer.

"For a destination resort, which is what we present ourselves as, it's absolutely imperative to have a beach," said Bill Callahan, Ocean's general manager. "It affects us when people come down and see that it's not here."

Most of project involves widening beaches in the most heavily eroded north end of Atlantic City, although portions of neighboring Ventnor will be included as well. And in the nearby beach towns of Margate and Longport, repairs are planned for dunes, sand fencing, access paths and crossovers, and dune grass will be planted.

The work should be completed in two to four months, the Army Corps said.

Further north, beach replenishment is also ongoing in Harvey Cedars, Beach Haven and Long Beach Township on Long Beach Island.

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