After weeks of storm delays, the first chunks of rocks and cement were clawed out of the earth at Squibnocket Beach Monday to start the public portion of the public/private project.

Pay raises for town employees, improvements to Menemsha Harbor and a change in the land agreement tied to the Squibnocket Beach project are all on the docket when Chilmark voters convene for a special town meeting Monday evening.

Five years after Hurricane Sandy ravaged Squibnocket, work began this week on a 300-foot raised causeway that will provide access to homes near the beach.

On a mild afternoon, a few eiders bobbed up and down in the surf at Squibnocket Beach. Cars came and went from the town parking lot, which now juts out beyond the eroding shoreline on either side.

Passing through the second electronic security-armed gate on the way to Squibnocket it begins to dawn on you: This place is important.