Highlights of the Informational Meeting Regarding the Dredging of the North Shore Canals
There was not an empty seat at the meeting held at Town Hall last evening. Mayor Collier facilitated the meeting. Ferdinand Williams from Spectrum Associates and Skeeter McClure from Volkert and Associates were there to explain the process and Joyce Allen, Building Inspector was there to answer questions as well.
The actual permits from the Corps of Engineers will necessitate coordination with various agencies at different levels (EPA, ADEM, Fish and Wildlife). An interagency meeting will take place within the next month. Then there will be the actual permit application or joint application.
To start the process, an environmental assessment (EA) will be needed to make sure that the dredging will not degrade the water standards, the work area will support navigation post-project, and that the incidental take will not effect piping plover, turtles, etc. There must be concurrence with the other agencies.
Another aspect of the project will be to find a suitable place to dispose of the sand with the possibility of using the sand as part of the berm if the timing is right (beachability must be determined).
There are several different aspects as to the work areas themselves: where there is bulkhead on each side of the area, marsh/bulkhead, pure sand, etc.
A Public Hearing will take place after the Environmental Assessment.
Part of this project is being funded by a grant. The cost share to the Town will then be passed on to the property owners in the areas involved. Mayor Collier indicated that the Town is willing to act as a conduit for the grant.
The areas affected would be:
Right of Entry was briefly mentioned. Mayor Collier indicated that 100% permission was what they hoped for but realized that the reality would be somewhat less. Mr. McClure indicated that later on in the process, they would identify more specifically areas of ingress and egress.
The following points/questions were brought up during the meeting by property owners:
One property owner questioned why a meeting such as this had notification by word of mouth only in light of the fact that many owners in the targeted area are non-residents and asked if the Town could not seek a better means of communication. Another property owner asked how many people in the room had received an e-mail notification of the meeting (from Island Watch), ¾’s of the attendees raised their hands! Joyce Allen then passed around sheets of papers to get people’s e-mail addresses.
A point of contention was brought to the fore when property owners requested that sand from the north side of the island which they were paying for, remain on the north side to fill in areas that needed it. Additionally, Silver Cay property owners wanted the sand to be used to augment a berm that they had in their area. Mayor Collier responded that that was not considered in the project. The building inspector said that several months ago, and possibly still, the Corps was issuing free permits to dredge on the north side but that they would have to pay private contractors. The question was then asked, “Why should the property owners pay to have the sand sent to the other side of the island and then pay again (private contractors) to have sand put on their own property?â€
The question of assessments was brought up: What if the owners on a targeted canal felt that there was no need for their canal to be dredged. Another property owner questioned the fairness if one work area was more greatly affected than another.
The actual assessment has yet to be determined. Although the letter indicated a possibility of $15-$20 per linear foot, Skeeter McClure stated that additional assessments might be necessary for sand quality surveys.
Silver Cay has its own property owners’ association and wanted to begin a petition to have the dredged sand placed on the north side. Property owners from the other areas involved also wanted to have a joint effort made on their behalf to either have their area removed from the project or at least be able to have the sand re-distributed on the north side. Seberal groups were forming after the meeting was over.
If you wish to be a part of these groups and have your name/input forwarded, Island Watch will do do.
It has been requested that you print/share or forward this letter to anyone whom may be interested and was unable to attend the meeting.