“It’s a tragedy,’’ said Elaine Anderson, a selectwoman in Provincetown. “It’s a very special place, and this is very serious.’’
George Price, superintendent of the Cape Cod National Seashore, which manages the beach, said he is confident repairs can be completed in time for the beach to open this summer. But the deterioration of the macadam parking lot and barrier wall, built decades ago and increasingly exposed to the surf and winds, leaves its future in doubt.
“It’s not really sustainable for the long term,’’ Price said. “Certainly today you would never build a parking lot so close to the water. The long-term planning is going to have to abide by current perspectives.’’
Waves now regularly break onto the parking lot, Price said, undermining its integrity. At the north end, a semicircle section has collapsed, forcing the Seashore to close the area.
Seashore officials, while aware the situation has become precarious, have been taken aback by the number and severity of the cave-ins, particularly during a mild winter. The biggest collapse, in front of a bathhouse built in the 1950s, has left a swath of the beach covered in chunks of broken asphalt.
“To have spontaneous failures at four different areas, there’s no question we were surprised,’’ Price said. “We thought we’d have a couple more years, but it’s just a cumulative effect of erosion and old infrastructure.’’
For regular visitors to Herring Cove, who savor time there as an escape, news of the damage has been troubling.
“I’m very worried,’’ said Mary-Jo Avellar, who serves on an advisory commission to the Seashore. “It’s part of our way of life.’’
In the summer, drivers arrive hours before sunset to secure a spot, Avellar said, and year-round residents visit throughout the winter, even if they don’t leave the car.
