Hurricane & Storm Damage Reduction Project

Transcription

1 Hurricane & Storm Damage Reduction Project

2 History of Project Impacts from Opal (1995) & Georges (1998) Led to creation of a one cent bed tax for Beach Nourishment (1999) Began federal study process (2002) -12 th year of continual effort Impacts from Ivan (2004), Arlene (2005) and Dennis (2005)

3 Inevitable There will be future weather impacts in Walton County, Florida. Preventative action to reduce these impacts is necessary.

4 Inevitable Storm Surge After , thirty-three habitable structures were damaged and needed substantial repairs.

5 HIGHEST Risk Areas Rankings in descending order of risk for devastation (highest to lowest): Blue Mountain Beach Highlands and Dune Allen Seacrest to Inlet Beach Santa Rosa Beach to Old Florida Beach Seaside to Deer Lake State Park Gulf Trace to WaterColor WaterSound to Seacrest Walton County Storm Risks to Structures Post-Dennis along 30A; Analyzed all beaches based on four storm levels: 10-year, 20-year, 50-year and 100-year storm.

6 Beach & Dune Loss Examples Seaside 2005 (pre-dennis) Seaside 2010 (5 yrs post-dennis)

7 Beach & Dune Losses Over 86,000 cubic yards of sand lost between 1997 and 2005 From post- Opal to post-dennis Equivalent to approximately 28 cubic yards of sand/foot of beach Proposed project consists of placing approximately 34 cubic yards of sand/foot of beach.

8 Inevitable Seawall Damage

9 YOUR Beaches Are Disappearing

10 YOUR Beaches Are Disappearing

11 YOUR Beaches Are Disappearing

12 Other Federal Beach Projects Panama City, FL Clearwater/St.Pete, FL Miami Beach, FL Boca Raton, FL Ft. Lauderdale, FL Ft. Pierce, FL Delray Beach, FL Venice, FL Folly Beach, SC Myrtle Beach, SC Ocean City, MD Cape May, NJ Coney Island, NY Long Island, NY Ventura, CA Oceanside, CA Virginia Beach, VA

13 How YOU Can Protect: Construction Easements Why Grant a Property Easement? The sole purpose of an easement is to allow Walton County and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect coastline property. Easements are required by the federal government and will last for the duration of this project.

14 Your Top Benefits 1. No Cost to You The project will be completely funded by Walton County TDC (visitor bed taxes), Federal Government and State of Florida. *Millions of dollars funded by our visitors. 2. Protects YOUR Home/Property Erosion and storm damage will occur. New sand will protect your property from greater damage. 3. Backed by United States for Another Generation After future disasters the U.S. Corps of Engineers will nourish these beaches for the next 50 years, rather than relying on FEMA.

15 Consider the Facts Walton County will allow commercial vending in front of my beach. There are no such considerations and this is prohibited by county ordinance without the upland owner s permission. I never want to establish an Erosion Control Line (ECL)! In some cases, the line has not yet been demarcated in parts of Walton County. During this project or following future storm damages an ECL will ultimately be defined.

16 Consider the Facts Will the public have the right to use my beach? The public will not gain any new rights. The public only has the right to use a beach seaward of the Erosion Control Line(ECL) just as they already do today. All upland rights before the project are preserved by state statute. An ECL is a requirement of all projects ongoing in the United states not a local condition nor a new precedence. I won t own my property after the project! Untrue. The rights requested for this project are only for construction and maintenance of the Walton County HSDR Project only.

17 Consider the Facts My property value will go down? We have no information supporting this claim. In addition, we are unaware of any property value decreases in Western Walton County due to the project constructed in Will have to rebuild my walkover? There is no requirement that walkovers have to be rebuilt. It will be a property owner s decision on a case by case basis.

18 Consider the Facts The project is going to destroy my vegetation! There may be temporary disruption but any dune area that is disturbed or created will receive diverse, native vegetation as another vital way to protect your property. The sand quality will be inferior. It s our sand. This county is very fortunate that current supplies will come from the same local geologic formation as the West Destin project that was successfully completed in Sufficient sand has currently been identified through exhaustive surveying.

19 Top 3 Reasons WHY This Project is Beneficial to YOUR Community 1. Improved Dune Health The majestic dunes in South Walton help protect our 15 rare costal dune lakes, create barriers for our homes, and preserves our iconic skyline. 1. Keep the Economy Strong Tourism is the #1 industry in Walton County with a $7 Billion impact on our local economy and is the #1 employer of Walton s working families. 1. Helps to Safeguard Wildlife Our beaches are home to a variety of rare species that are special to our area. Help to protect their future homes and species with restoring sand back on the beaches.

20 Stay Up to Date Hurricane & Storm Damage Reduction Project Website Recorded Voice Message (855)

21 Thank You For More Information Contact Brad Pickel Seahaven Consulting