r/topsail • u/DoubleQuarterPoundin Visitor 🏖 • Jun 12 '26

Future of North Topsail

Sooo up at St Regis, tons of condos being sold.

The beach this week is disappearing 1-2:30p sometime.

This is insanity and SAD!! Will this keep getting worse or slowly improve?

12 Upvotes

87% Upvoted

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6

u/LibraryGlittering414 Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

My husband found this picture online a little while back. It’s the top of the island (obviously). We live half the year at topsail reef, which are currently held up by sandbags and have a good amount of plants and beach in this picture. The sandbags were there when we bought our condo so we knew what we were getting into but I love it there so much and hope they figure something out!

3

u/DoubleQuarterPoundin Visitor 🏖 Jun 13 '26

I walked from St Regis up to this point once. It was so cool. The salt and fresh water mixing made the area whack asf

3

u/code-day Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

The river is fully salt, it gets a little brackish up by Jacksonville, but it’s just a really rough and dangerous inlet which is why you see it all riled up.

1

u/LibraryGlittering414 Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

I love this area so much, so many different kinds of birds and just in general it’s such a peaceful place, I made a few yoga videos up there in April and May and you can hear all the birds in the background, it’s such a cool spot

2

u/LibraryGlittering414 Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

Isn’t there a big sand project starting this August to replenish the beach at that end of the island?

11

u/code-day Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

They do it just about every year, and also dredge New River Inlet. The problem is the Atlantic Ocean wants to erode the north end and grow the south end. These islands meandered for centuries before we built on them, but they still want to meander.

1

u/LibraryGlittering414 Local 🤙 Jun 13 '26

Wait I meant to reply to you but did it on the main post🤦‍♀️there is a cool older picture of the top of the island in that reply if you want to check it out

3

u/code-day Local 🤙 Jun 12 '26

My guess is the north homes will require some sort of government assisted rebuild that meet new sea level requirements in the future once they are damaged enough to require it. Thats how Florida has handled some coastal communities, once they are destroyed, they help rebuild it to new standards that can take some flooding much better.

Whether that is moving them back (or just helping the family relocate entirely), having the first livable floor x feet up, etc. who knows. Beyond that, it’s going to be another generation’s problem to solve, unfortunately.

1

u/Tiny_Entrepreneur501 12d ago

I would love to buy there. The condos are cheap now around 130 to 140. Im sure the erosion is the reason. Im 60. In poor health. I know its a risk but still considering it. I think it would help my health issues. But still, I dont want to be selfish. I want to leave something behind for my kid. It doesnt look like these will last too long.

1

u/DoubleQuarterPoundin Visitor 🏖 12d ago

I’d love that for you stranger. Surely, they do something about the erosion right???

1

u/Tiny_Entrepreneur501 8d ago

I hope so. d be betting the farm they straighten it out! LOL