The boardwalk at Pier Village has been repaired and is now accessible to the public.

Construction began on Jan. 17 and took a little over a month to complete.

Repairs includes concrete slope protection, railings, sand berm, landscaping and repair of the boardwalk's irrigation system.

The Long Branch Council awarded a $194,380 contract to K.B.D. Construction LLC for the work in January.

The Pier Village boardwalk was designed in a way that allowed the water to go underneath and then go back out to the ocean, so it was not as badly damaged as the boardwalk south of the Long Branch shopping center.

Those repairs will be much more costly for the city, but FEMA is also expected to pay for the work. Officials have said the cost to rebuild the boardwalk exactly as it was before Hurricane Sandy destroyed it would be $7.5 million.

FEMA will also pay the city 50 percent of that cost to rebuild the boardwalk in a more resilient fashion, which could include raising it, creating higher bluffs or adding a concrete barrier in front of it.

The Long Branch Council is expected to choose a new design for the boardwalk in the next few months.