Thornton Honored

Posted April 1st 2021

Avalon municipal engineer Thomas Thornton’s management of the 8th Street Jetty reconstruction project did not go unnoticed by his peers. The Mott MacDonald engineer received an Honor Place award from the New Jersey Society of Municipal Engineers in a virtual ceremony Nov. 10.

The jetty experienced heavy damage from Winter Storm Jonas in 2016. The reconstruction was completed last August. The project replaced the top layer of the jetty and elevated it in some locations. It reinforced the jetty’s damaged foundation and will help to slow sand erosion in the north area of the borough.

It was the fourth such award for Thornton, who said he was proud of the work on the jetty and honored to receive the recognition. But he pointed out that he did not do it alone.

“It was really a team effort, from the support of Mayor Pagliughi and Administrator Scott Wahl, to the design and project management by Mott MacDonald’s coastal engineers Bob Mainberger and Doug Gaffney, to the on-site inspection services of Tim Clarke,” Thornton said. “I was fortunate to be part of the team.”

Mott MacDonald, the firm managing the reconstruction, received 75 percent of the funds for the project from a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant.

Thornton has been involved in numerous Avalon municipal projects and currently chairs the Avalon Floodplain Management Committee. He has received previous recognition from the state society for his work on Avalon’s Veterans Park, Surfside Park, and dredging in the back bay.

Photo caption: Mott MacDonald’s Douglas Gaffney (left) and Thomas Thornton, who also is Avalon’smunicipal engineer, pose by the completed 8th Street Jetty reconstruction project.