IT'S a stark contrast.
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At one end of Stockton beach heavy machinery operators wearing lifejackets are furiously battling tides building a $3.7 million temporary rock bag sea wall to combat erosion and improve beach access.
Less than a 2km down the beach, near the King Street breakwater, a standstill continues.
Each day beachgoers and fishers traverse the same 2.5m sheer drop they have been risking for almost a year to access the beach.
Fisherman Mitch Robbins said he couldn't understand why the temporary fencing and signs warning people not to use the King St beach entrance had been in place for so long.
The access has been closed since an east coast low hammered Stockton in July last year, ripping tonnes of sand from the erosion-crippled coastline.
"This is perhaps traditionally the most well-used beach access in Stockton," he said.
"It's been closed for a year and there doesn't seem to be any good reason why. The type of work we are talking about is nothing like what is happening at the other end of the beach.
"This is a much easier fix and still nothing has been done."
The Newcastle Herald reported a stand-off in October last year over who was responsible for repairing the access.
A Port of Newcastle spokeswoman said this week she was unable to provide details about any planned works because "this is on Crown Land and is outside of the port lease".
"Please refer all questions regarding the work to City of Newcastle," she said.
In response, City of Newcastle said it had been "working collaboratively" with Port of Newcastle since 2020 to resolve the issue.
"The project has progressed with City of Newcastle providing draft reconstruction design and approvals pathway," she said.
"Work will begin when the design is finalised and appropriate materials can be sourced. Testing of rock is currently being undertaken at a local quarry."
City of Newcastle's spokeswoman said the work, on the northern side of the breakwater, involved a range of agencies, sharing roles and responsibilities.
She said the beach access was included in the design to provide a "more resilient and functional structure".
"The preliminary estimate for works is approximately $1 million," she said.
"The investment will be funded by Port of Newcastle and City of Newcastle, with the potential for City of Newcastle to explore grant funding sources."
Stockton Surf Life Saving Club president Callan Nickerson described the King St beach entrance as "crucial" for the club's operations.
"It's more important as the other accessways might be not be accessible," he said.
"It's closure really limits our ability to get craft, vessels and equipment onto the beach. In the case of an emergency, it's far from ideal."
Mr Robbins called on the agencies involved to fast track the works, or at least provide a temporary sand pathway to the beach.
"You see people everyday climbing up and down there," he said. "A machine would be able to cut in a temporary path, it would be a much safer option for all."
City of Newcastle has invested more than $10 million combatting beach erosion at Stockton.
The 2021/22 budget allocates a further $7.775 million towards immediate risk and ongoing management.
The rock bag sea wall project, that was rejected by the NSW government for funding, stretches along Barrie Crescent, from Stone St to Griffith Ave, encompassing about 15 private properties, five roads and a beach car park.
About 1100 Kyowa rock bags are replacing sand bags at the erosion hot spot, that used to be the site of the Stockton day care centre before it was demolished in October 2019.
The 1932 building, which once housed the north Stockton surf club, was demolished after unrelenting erosion caused structural damage.
The works, expected to take three months, includes digging out the existing sand bags and replacing them with rock bags and a limited number of sand bags.
Under Stockton's Coastal Management Plan (CMP) approved by the NSW government last year, the site was to have a revetment, or sloping seawall, built to stop the erosion, but the council changed the project to use rock bags.
Projects approved under CMPs are eligible for 2:1 funding from the NSW government, but projects not approved under CMPs are only eligible for 1:1 funding. A $2.076 million funding grant application for the rock bag wall was rejected by the NSW government.
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