Anna Maria beach renourishment expected next week
By Rick Catlin
Islander Reporter
The dredge that Goodloe Marine of Apollo Beach will use for the upcoming Anna Maria Island beach renourishment project should be off the north end of the Island later this week, said company president Ben Goodloe.
But he won't begin moving pipes, equipment and work crews onto the beach until after the busy July 4 weekend.
"Depending upon the weather, we'll begin coming onto the Island July 5 or July 6," Goodloe said.
The .6-mile portion of beach renourishment for Anna Maria will be done first, he said. Again, if the weather holds, Goodloe said, he should be done with Anna Maria in about 10 days. The entire beach renourishment project should take around 90 days if the weather and equipment hold up, he said.
"If the weather is good, we ought to be done in about three months," he predicted. "It all depends upon the weather and the equipment. Let's hope we don't have a hurricane season like last year."
The $4.8 million emergency beach renourishment for the Island is funded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers under a federal act passed in the wake of the four hurricanes that struck Florida beaches last year, resulting in severe beach loss in 17 locations along the coastline.
Anna Maria Island had not been scheduled for beach renourishment until about 2010. |
