ANNA MARIA – A company identified by Mayor Dan Murphy in a Dec. 18 email as the contractor at a residential construction site where mangroves were removed was not the responsible party, he told The Sun the next day.
“The City of Anna Maria has confirmed that Mason Martin, LLC, the contractor for the construction of the house at 111 Gull, was the entity that removed the mangroves, not West Coast Marine Construction, LLC,” Murphy wrote in his Dec. 19 email. “It was not the intention of the City to imply that the seawall contractor, West Coast Marine Construction, LLC was responsible for the mangrove removal.”
In its Dec. 20 edition, which went to press before Dec. 19, The Sun quoted Murphy’s Dec. 18 email, which was also sent to other news outlets detailing the city’s response to mangrove removal at the property.
Murphy wrote on Dec. 18 that subsequent to a neighbor’s complaint on Dec. 4 “regarding the extensive removal and alteration of mangroves at 111 Gull Drive,” city staff visited the property and confirmed the mangrove removal.
“This scope of work is proposed by building permit ACC22-000153 which has not been issued and thus, is not permitted to commence,” Murphy wrote in the Dec. 18 email.
He wrote that a stop work order was issued and posted on Dec. 6 and emailed to James Annis of West Coast Marine Construction and property owner Jackie Sharp of Massachusetts-based Sharp Development LLC.
“On December 13, 2023, staff received several complaints from residents yet again, despite the Stop Work order,” the mayor’s email continued.
He wrote the Stop Work order posting had been removed from the property and city staff observed workers actively removing mangroves.
Murphy wrote the Stop Work order was reposted, adding in the email, “The actions of the contractor in ignoring the previously issued Stop Work order constitute the willfull violation of the building code, making the contractor subject to the jurisdiction of the City of Anna Maria’s Local Construction Regulation Board.”
Annis was the only contractor mentioned in the Dec. 18 email.
“I never did any work there,” Annis told The Sun. “We got DEP (Florida Department of Environmental Protection) approval to take some mangroves out, but then it goes to the Army Corps of Engineers. If they don’t approve it within a year it goes back to DEP. We’ve been so busy, I thought this job was dead in the water.”
Annis said having his name mistakenly attached to the mangrove removal caused him concern about the potential impact to his business.
“I think the mayor jumped the gun,” Annis said. “I’ve been doing this for 30 years, I know better.”
The Sun made a public records request on Dec. 21 to the City of Anna Maria for a copy of the Stop Work order, but it was not received by press time. City offices were closed from Dec. 22-25.
In his reply to a request for comment, Mason Martin LLC’s Frank Agnelli did not address the mangrove removal.
An email request to Murphy for comment as to how city officials determined that Mason Martin was the responsible contractor was not replied to by press time.
STATE, FEDERAL AGENCIES WEIGH IN
According to Dec. 20 correspondence received by The Sun from the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), the agency had issued a permit exemption for the construction of a seawall at the property. Under this exemption, limited mangrove alteration/removal is allowed within the footprint of the seawall.
“Last week, members of the community began reaching out to DEP with concerns about the work occurring at the site,” DEP spokesperson Brian Humphreys wrote in an email to The Sun. “In the coming days, DEP will send an inspector out to ensure any mangrove alterations (trimming/removal) are being done within the footprint of the site’s permit exemption.”
If it is determined that unauthorized mangrove alteration has occurred, DEP may pursue enforcement against all responsible parties, Humphreys wrote.
While the seawall permit exemption was granted by the DEP, Sarasota-based environmental attorney Justin Bloom, who represents Suncoast Waterkeeper, said it may have been granted without the agency having all the facts and a permit may have been required.
“The schematics sent to the FDEP didn’t show the mangroves,” Bloom said. “Had they done so, a permit would likely have been required.”
According to a Sept. 19 letter from DEP to Bradenton surveyor Jeffrey Hostetler, the applicant must obtain additional authorization according to the terms of the permit exemption.
“This letter does not relieve you from the responsibility of obtaining other federal, state, or local authorization that may be required for the activity,” he wrote.
In an email chain provided by Bloom, Anna Maria City Planner Ashley Austin emailed the following on Dec. 13 to Heather McClurg of the DEP: “The City of Anna Maria Building Department has received several complaints regarding the removal of mangroves at 111 Gull Dr in preparation of the installation of a seawall which has not received a City permit yet. Based on the complaint, the City has requested that a survey be provided by the applicant showing the preconstruction limits of the mangroves. In reviewing the file, I located the attached FDEP exemption letter. The survey located on page 6 of the attached exemption letter does not show any mangroves and thus, may not have been a part of FDEP’s review. Does this information change FDEP’s conclusion outlined in the attached exemption letter? Please let me know.”
McClurg wrote to others at the DEP, “I received this message from the City of Anna Maria yesterday. I responded letting them know that the applicant was authorized to alter the mangroves due to the activity being exempt. After viewing the photos though, I did note that they do not have proper BMP’s deployed and wanted to forward this over to compliance for review.”
A BMP (Best Management Practice) is a method used to prevent or control stormwater runoff and the discharge of pollutants, including sediment into local waterbodies, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
Based on emails provided by Bloom, propety owner Jackie Sharp wrote the following in part on Dec. 13 to Tracy Hurst of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
“I am unaware of the unauthorized activity you are referring to but look forward to working with you to resolve any issue that exists in a timely manner.”
Hurst responded by email on Dec. 13: “Ms. Sharp, As you are aware, the Corps is currently reviewing your request for a permit to construct a seawall. The attached pictures show a potentially unauthorized activity, that is, the removal of mangroves. I will be coordinating with our enforcement manager, but he is currently out of the office for the holidays. Please cease any additional work within waters of the United States, including but not limited to, mangrove removal. I will be in touch shortly.”
In a Dec. 21 email to Suncoast Waterkeeper, Hurst wrote, “We are just starting to look into this case and I will need to coordinate with our enforcement officer before further action is taken.”
