Sand Key property owners have until Friday (June 2) to provide easements to take part in an upcoming beach nourishment project. Owners who do not provide easements will not be included in the project.

SAND KEY – Pinellas County and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are advising Sand Key property owners that time is running out to provide easements in the affected areas of the Sand Key segment of the Pinellas County Shore Protection Project.

Owners in the affected areas and individual parcels have until Friday (June 2) to provide the perpetual storm damage reduction easements to Pinellas County, otherwise these areas will be bypassed completely by the nourishment project.

The Corps currently estimates that approximately 8,000 linear feet of beach on Sand Key will be bypassed because of a lack of consecutive easements from property owners, coupled with areas not requiring nourishment. Maps showing the proposed project, with anticipated shoreline gaps in nourishment, can be viewed at pinellascounty.org.

Pinellas County sent letters to all affected property owners requesting easements last January. Since March, the county and the Corps have hosted two public meetings to ensure property owners understand the importance of the easements. Perpetual easements are required over the portions of the property located along the shoreline and within the projected material placement areas. The easements will allow for necessary construction activities to build and maintain the beach while ensuring that beaches remain open to the public in perpetuity. Public access is required for federally-funded beach nourishment projects.

Dr. John Bishop, coastal management coordinator for Pinellas County, encourages property owners to provide these easements. Constructing a continuous wide sandy beach along Sand Key provides the best protection for private property and infrastructure. A wide sandy beach also supports tourism, through improved recreational opportunities, as well as providing habitat for shorebirds and nesting sea turtles.

Owners who have not yet signed an easement and want to provide one should contact Bishop at (727) 464-8677 as soon as possible.

The Pinellas County Shore Protection Project totals 21.8 miles of shoreline. Three constructed and authorized segments are actively maintained by the federal government in a cost share agreement with Pinellas County. These segments include Sand Key, Treasure Island and Long Key. The federal government has invested nearly $120 million in restorative beach erosion control measures, including beach nourishment and the construction of groins, to date.

Sand Key | Beach Renourishment | Beaches | Pinellas County | Environment | Tampa Bay News | TB Reporter

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