ANNA MARIA – The Anna Maria City Pier hurricane damage inspection and report provided by Kisinger Campo & Associates cost the city $25,738.
During the city commission’s March 27 meeting, Mayor Mark Short further addressed the inspection report he previously discussed on March 13.
Short told city commissioners the pilings and the walkway support system were likely weakened by Hurricane Helene’s wave action and storm surge last September and that structural weakening contributed to a 75- to 100-yard portion of the pier walkway disappearing as a result of Hurricane Milton’s hurricane-force winds in early October.
Page 7 of the 35-page report, which lists a Dec. 30 inspection date, says, “Based on our observations, it is assumed that the pier piles failed due to a combination of wind, waves and storm surge during the hurricane. The intense wave action and storm surge may have scoured the seabed, reduced the embedment depth of the piles and compromised their stability. Additionally, the piles may have experienced excessive bending and shear stresses from wind-driven waves, potentially leading to structural buckling or displacement. The combination of these factors likely caused the piles to lose their load-bearing capacity, resulting in the progressive collapse of the remaining portions of the pier.”
On March 27, Short noted the inspection was conducted by the Kisinger Campo & Associates firm that also provided the detailed inspection report. Short said the inspection was not conducted by the George F. Young engineering firm that is designing and engineering the new pier walkway, which will extend from the shoreline to the T-end of the pier.
Regarding the cost of the inspection, Short said, “For the record, the city of Anna Maria has a contract with George F. Young for $347,000 for the initial work related to the pier. Over 70% of that is for the design and engineering of the new walkway. $25,738 of that total was for the inspection. George F. Young did not do the inspection. It was done by a group called Kisinger Campo & Associates, out of Tallahassee. The $25,000 inspection focused principally and primarily on the condition of what was left of the pier and the T-end, as well as the condition of the pilings that were under water.”
Continuing, Short said, “Just over $25,000 of the $347,000 contract was spent for the inspection. That inspection was required by the Army Corps of Engineers. It’s required by DEP (Florida Department of Environmental Protection). It’s required for anybody who’s going to come in to rebuild our pier. I just wanted to set the record straight about what the contract was really for.”
Reasonable expense
Now retired, Commissioner John Lynch spent 35 years working in various supply chain, manufacturing and innovation management roles for Proctor & Gamble. While participating in the March 27 commission meeting by phone, Lynch said he reviewed the inspection report and felt the inspection costs were reasonable.
“Based on my professional experience, first and foremost, the transparency of providing that today is very helpful,” Lynch said. “The overall cost, as well as the specific inspection cost, are not out of line with what my experience has been professionally in managing similar types of projects. I think it’s important that you are setting the record straight in terms of what was spent in each category and that those are ordinary and reasonable costs as we go into this pier rebuild.”
Related coverage:
Report identifies cause of pier walkway failure
