Shellharbour City Council will seek a $8.2 million loan to rebuild the seawall at Warilla Beach, in a $15 million project to address erosion and instability.
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Last month, the council received a state government grant of $6.825 million for the reconstruction of the ailing seawall, which was first built in the 1960s.
The council needs to stump up another $8.175 million to meet the remaining cost.
At Tuesday's meeting, councillors unanimously agreed with a recommendation to apply for a 20-year loan for that amount, with an estimated interest rate of 2.7 per cent.
The renewal of the seawall was included in the council's coastal zone management plan in 2018.
The 900 metre wall is eroded and unstable, so will be rebuilt to modern engineering standards to address coastal erosion and public safety concerns.
The reconstructed wall will be made of rock, but will be built on a slope that will remove the risk of instability and falling rocks.
The proposed wall will also be larger, covering some of the sandy area of the beach.
Deputy mayor John Murray said it was timely the council "gets on with things" given the impact of extreme weather events.
Cr Kellie Marsh said she was "not comfortable" with the council borrowing such a large sum of money, but it was "absolutely heartbreaking" to see people's homes lost to coastal erosion in other parts of the state.
She noted the residents of Little Lake Crescent - which backed onto the beach - were paying higher rates, but said the whole community were shareholders when it came to the coastline.
Councillors were told a communications plan had been developed, and there would be a broad community consultation process before work began.
The estimated completion date of the project is August 2023.
The council will also contribute $50,700 to a three-year biodiversity project at Bass Point, for which the NSW government has awarded a grant of the same amount.
This will involve weed management and replanting native vegetation to protect high-value ecosystems, including threatened species, ecosystems and habitats.
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