LONGBOAT KEY – A portion of the Greer Island beach will be closed through the beginning of September as a dredging project continues.
According to the Town of Longboat Key’s Public Works Department, an area along the west side of Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, is undergoing dredging of the sandspit near the dock area.
The Greer Island Spit Management Project’s tentative schedule, including the mobilization of upland equipment and dredging, began July 17-28, followed by upland clearing and excavation from July 24-31.
From July 31 through Aug. 14, hydraulic dredging of the Greer Island Spit is set to occur followed by hydraulic dredging of Canal 1A from Aug. 5-8.
Beach tilling is scheduled from Aug. 21-23, with the demobilization of the project set from Aug. 23 through Sept. 4.
The Longboat Key website notes that the schedule is tentative and subject to change.
In June 2022, the Longboat Key Town Commission permanently restricted the anchoring and beaching of motorized vessels in two areas of the southeast portion of Greer Island, along the east side of the Longboat Pass Bridge, across the bay from Jewfish Key.
Those areas are limited to beachgoers, waders, kayakers, paddleboarders and other non-motorized vessels, according to a 2022 town press release.
Boaters who violate those restrictions are subject to a $250 penalty for the first offense and $500 for subsequent offenses.
LONGBOAT KEY – The Greer Island beach east of the Longboat Pass Bridge is closed for about three weeks during a dredging project, then will open for recreational use – except to motorboats, according to an announcement posted on the town’s website.
The beach closure is due to an emergency dredge project to provide access to the lagoon area of Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island.
The project is in the same area of Greer Island that the town commission recently decided to permanently close to boaters.
Officials approved the permanent closure to protect people who swim and lounge in the shallow waters off Greer Island from boaters. After the dredging project is completed, buoys will be placed to mark the areas where motorboats are prohibited.
“These areas will then be limited to beachgoers, waders, kayakers, paddleboarders and other non-motorized vessels,” according to the announcement.
LONGBOAT KEY – Boaters will soon be prohibited from pulling ashore at two locations on Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, along the east side of the Longboat Pass Bridge.
The new restrictions are expected to be in place for the Fourth of July weekend.
The Longboat Key Town Commission adopted permanent restrictions on June 20 prohibiting the operation, anchoring and beaching of motorized vessels in two areas at the southeastern portion of Greer Island. Both soon- to-be-restricted areas are located at or near the popular landing area just east of the Longboat Pass Bridge, across the bay from Jewfish Key.
The town distributed a press release on June 22 regarding the pending prohibition, including a map that highlights in red the prohibited landing areas.
Pulling a motorized vessel ashore in the areas highlighted in red will soon be prohibited and violators could be fined. – Town of Longboat Key | Submitted
“Buoys marking the motorized vessels restricted areas will be installed prior to the 4th of July weekend. Boaters are advised to be aware of these areas, and that violations will carry a $250 penalty for a first offense and $500 for any subsequent offenses,” according to the press release. “The purpose is to protect public bathers that bathe, wade, lounge and congregate in and on the shallow waters of this portion of Greer Island from dangers caused by increased vessel operations along the beach. These areas will be limited to beachgoers, waders, kayakers, paddleboarders and other non-motorized vessels.”
Portions of the beach shoreline near the foot of the Longboat Pass Bridge (on the right) are being closed to motorized vessels. – Google Maps | Submitted
When contacted by The Sun, Longboat Key Planning, Zoning and Building Department Director Allen Parsons said the map contained
in the press release is helpful for understanding exactly where the new restrictions will apply.
“The two areas in red, that’s where motorized vessels cannot pull up onto the sand. Our goal is to have the buoys put out by the Fourth of July weekend. There is an area on the east side of the bridge where motorized boats can pull onto the sand,” Parsons said, noting the boat landing prohibitions will be permanent.
Parsons said the motorized boat landing prohibitions will not apply
to the long stretch of beach that runs along the length of Longboat Pass on the west side of the bridge, between the bridge and the Gulf of Mexico.
MANATEE COUNTY – Manatee County has a FEMA-funded, county-managed beach renourishment project planned for Coquina Beach in early 2021.
The county is also partnering with the Town of Longboat Key on a beach renourishment project that includes the construction of five permeable rock groins.
The Town of Longboat Key also plans to conduct an emergency dredging operation on Greer Island, also known as Beer Can Island, at the northern tip of the key.
These projects were presented and discussed at the Tuesday, Dec. 15 Manatee County Commission meeting.
Coquina Beach renourishment
Tom Pierro, principal engineer with Coastal Planning and Engineering, presented the county’s Coquina Beach renourishment plan.
The county-owned beach is located in Bradenton Beach at the southern end of Anna Maria Island. Pierro said the Coquina Beach renourishment project pertains to a mile-and-a-half stretch of beach in that area.
Pierro said the beach area is managed locally by the county and does not contain the required infrastructure elements to have been included in the recently-completed Anna Maria Island beach renourishment project that received significant federal funding.
Pierro said the beach sand lost during Hurricane Hermine in 2016 and Hurricane Irma in 2017 qualified the Coquina Beach renourishment project for FEMA funds.
About 200,000 cubic yards of sand can be removed from Longboat Pass, he said, adding that the county plans to use about 70,000 cubic yards of that available sand for the Coquina Beach renourishment project. He said the rest could possibly be made available to the Town of Longboat Key to renourish the beach at the end of Gulfside Road.
Pierro estimated the Coquina Beach renourishment project will cost approximately $3 million. He said the project plans are complete, and expects the contract to be awarded in January and the work to begin in February or March. Pierro said the project must be completed by the end of May to preserve the FEMA funds.
Greer Island dredging
Representing the Town of Longboat Key, Senior Project Manager Charlie Mopps presented the Greer Island emergency dredging plan.
Mopps said the purpose of the dredging operation is to improve and restore boat and kayak access to Greer Island lagoon near the Longboat Pass Bridge. Mopps said the emergency dredging project calls for the removal of about 1,000 cubic yards of sand in a 30-foot stretch of the lagoon.
The Greer Island lagoon will be dredged to improve accessibility for boaters and kayakers. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Mopps said the dredging contract has been awarded to Duncan Seawall, Dock & Boat Lift. The dredging project is expected to begin soon and take only a few days to complete once started. Mopps said the sand removed from the lagoon will be stored for later use with the Longboat Key beach renourishment project.
This photographic comparison illustrates how the Greer Island channel opening has narrowed over the past two decades. – Joe Hendricks | Sun
Beach renourishment and groins
On behalf of the Town of Longboat Key, Al Browder, vice president of the Olsen Associates firm, provided county commissioners with an overview of the Longboat Key beach renourishment project.
The project is divided into three segments. Occurring first, segment 1 will include the north end of the key and Greer Island. The segment 1 plans call for the installation of five permeable groins and the addition of approximately 200,000 cubic yards of beach sand.
Browder said the beach renourishment sand will come from the town’s permitted borrow areas more than a mile offshore of Passage Key.
Browder said the low-crested permeable rock groins will complement two existing concrete groins located near the street end at North Shore Road. He said the goal is to slow the rate of sand flow and erosion in that area.
The existing concrete groins near the north end of Longboat Key will be joined by five new permeable rock groins.- Joe Hendricks | Sun
“The purpose here is to maintain sandy beach conditions along the Gulf. It has been a running battle to protect the north tip of Longboat Key and maintain the recreational value and the environmental habitat in the lagoon itself,” Browder said.
Browder said the segment 1 project is anticipated to start in February or March and take about 180 days to complete. When the segment 1 work is complete, some additional dune vegetation and mangrove restoration will take place along the Greer Island lagoon.
The segment 2 plan calls for 350,000 cubic yards of beach sand to be placed in the center section of the key’s Gulfside beach areas.
Listed in the Town of Longboat Key’s presentation as optional and dependent on available funds, the segment 3 plans call for 160,000 cubic yards of beach sand to potentially be placed at the south end of the key.
These discussions resulted in the county commission authorizing the county administrator to execute an interlocal agreement with the Town of Longboat Key that provides $2.69 million as the county’s contribution to the town’s renourishment project.
The accompanying adoption of Resolution 20-199 authorized a short-term loan not to exceed $1.99 million from the county’s general fund to its beach erosion control fund. The remaining $700,000 of the county’s contribution to the town project will come from the county’s beach renourishment reserve fund.
The commission also approved the town’s request for the easements needed for groin installations.
BRADENTON – Longboat Key and Manatee County officials plan to talk more frequently about issues affecting the islands on both sides of Longboat Pass since their joint work session last week.
Shared challenges for Anna Maria Island and Longboat Key include beach erosion and renourishment, dredging, and what to do about Beer Can Island.
Anna Maria Island is connected to Longboat Key by a bridge over Longboat Pass.
Beer Can Island
Longboat Key wants Manatee County to pitch in to clean up Beer Can Island, officially called Greer Island, and offer emergency medical and police services at the Manatee County-owned park.
Beer Can Island, or Greer Island, is actually a peninsula at the north end of Longboat Key that extends under the bridge to Anna Maria Island. – Cindy Lane | Sun
Shifting sands in Longboat Pass have caused Greer Island – actually a peninsula on the north end of Longboat Key – to spread under the Longboat Pass bridge and out the other side, making a popular shady spot under the bridge for boaters.
But those boaters sometimes violate Manatee County ordinances prohibiting alcohol, littering and dogs on the beach, according to Longboat Key’s Assistant to the Town Manager, Susan Phillips.
Residents of north Longboat Key, who also are Manatee County residents, and Longboat Key town staff have been cleaning the park, she said, with the town’s marine patrol responding to emergencies, she said.
Manatee County’s marine patrol also has responded to emergencies, said Charlie Hunsicker, the county’s Parks and Natural Resources Department director.
The county is deed restricted from adding trails, bathrooms or picnic shelters to the park, but can step up to help clean the park, he said.
The erosion that is changing the shape of Beer Can Island also is threatening north Longboat Key homes, Phillips said. This is leading Longboat Key to call for Manatee County to help pay for groins to be built to protect the homes.
Longboat Key already has installed erosion control devices on town property to help protect residents on North Shore Road and those on the Gulf of Mexico, she said.
Hunsicker said he plans to meet with Longboat Key officials to address immediate erosion issues, which may or may not involve funding from Manatee County.
It’s terminal
Some blame north Longboat Key’s erosion on work done to protect Anna Maria Island, such as the terminal erosion control groin built more than 50 years ago at the south end of Coquina Beach.
The terminal groin at the southern tip of Anna Maria Island on Longboat Pass will be replaced next year. – Cindy Lane | Sun
“Any hardened feature like that has an impact on adjacent land in Longboat Key, but they need that groin,” just as Longboat Key needs similar groins to protect the north end of its island, Phillips said.
The groin “keeps Anna Maria Island from going into the dredged channel,” Hunsicker said.
However, the groin is crumbling, and next year, “We’re going to remove the rock of ages and re-rock it,” keeping it the same size, he said.
Twin Piers
Three similarly-dilapidated structures to the north on Cortez Beach on Anna Maria Island were replaced in 2016 and are functioning well, as expected, he said.
One of the erosion control groins in Cortez Beach known as Twin Piers attracts fishermen.
The three permeable, adjustable erosion control groins at Twin Piers (a third pier was added after the name stuck) protect Gulf Drive – a hurricane evacuation route – from stormwater erosion, he said. They are popular surfing and fishing spots.
The $7.8 million structures did not affect erosion on north Longboat Key, he said, noting that dredging done by Longboat Key in 1992-94 could have caused some of the town’s erosion problems.
Coquina Beach rocks
In between the terminal groin and Twin Piers are several rows of rock on Coquina Beach running perpendicular to the shoreline that were installed to curb erosion, but now are obstacles for lifeguards to get to beachgoers, Hunsicker said.
“In the next year, we are looking at the feasibility of addressing the 50-year-old rock groins at Coquina Beach,” he said.
Manatee County Parks and Natural Resources Director Charlie Hunsicker looks over the erosion control groins on Coquina Beach that he wants to remove and replace with different devices. – Cindy Lane | Sun
Made of concrete walls containing rusting rebar and covered with rock buttresses, the structures are “a maintenance problem for us,” Hunsicker said.
They could be replaced with shorter versions of the three groins on Cortez Beach that would “substantially improve the visuals of Coquina Beach,” or a series of short, rock breakwaters 50-75 yards offshore, parallel to the beach and a foot above high tide.
“Beaches sometimes grow out to them,” he said.
Renourishment alternative
Trying to find new ways to hold the beaches together, the county also has considered a system of undercurrent stabilizers, called geotubes, he said.
The system, developed by Dick Holmberg, is an alternative to beach renourishment, which is criticized for causing damage to fisheries at sand mining and dredge sites, disrupting nearshore marine life when the sand is dumped on the beach and bulldozed into the water to create a larger beach, and changing sea bottom contours, affecting currents and waves.
The smooth tubes, which are mostly buried in the sand perpendicular to the beach, extending into the water – similar to the placement of the rock groins on Cortez Beach – slow down the current like speed bumps, causing the current to drop the sand it is carrying, and building the beach.
It is designed as a one-time repair, as opposed to beach renourishment, which is a continual process.
“We’ve looked at variations of that for more than 10 years,” Hunsicker said. “The system addresses small areas of erosion, called ‘hot spots,’ on short distances of beach that are getting more erosion than adjacent areas due to underwater natural formations.”
While the system is effective in those cases, it would not be as effective as beach renourishment is on long stretches of beach like Anna Maria Island has, which erodes at roughly the same rate.
Manatee County does not have the resources to bring in large equipment to repair small areas of beach, he said.
“By the time we are fully mobilized for a large project, it wouldn’t contribute to the overall effectiveness of the project,” Hunsicker said.
