Duval County Shore Protection Project12 October 2016
Tom Fallin, P.E.
City of Jacksonville
Chief, Engineering & Construction Management Division
214 N. Hogan Street
Jacksonville, FL 32202
Re: Duval County Shore Protection Project
Emergency Post -Storm Funds Required for Beach & Dune Restoration
olsen
associates, inc.
Coastal Engineering
Dear Tom:
The following summarizes the practicalrequirements uirements for timely dune restoration along
q
the Jacksonville pursuant Beaches,ursuant to Hurricane Matthew. As you know, since the storm, we
with the Corps of Engineers to identify the magnitude of beach
have been working closely g
erosion and meansrepairit, preferably to through the ongoing beach renourishment project ct that
was interrupted by the storm. The values presented below are based upon the post -storm beach
survey data collected to -date.
nourishment projectperformed extremely well — protecting the
The dunes and the beach
overwash and substantial damage. In the process, at least half the
uplands from storm flooding,
dunes'sand nd volume and sea -oats were eroded. So, our beach protection is now greatly
compromised. Prompt restoration of the dunes is important to prevent damage from the next
g
we are at the be inning of nor' easter season, when most of our
storms —especially because
beach erosion usually occurs.
The dredging contractoris presently that resentl constructing the beach renourishment project,
Engineers,is expected to re -commence sand placement this week,
under contract to the Corps of p Jacksonville Beach through Atlantic Beach. The southern mile of
working northward from south g
16th Avenue South to the St. Johns County line) was mostly completed prior to
the project (from the
and it fared prettywell. Unless interrupted, the contractor will complete
the hurricane,
remaining 5.1 miles of beach fill within about 50 days.
The dune is not
part of the federallyauthorized beach project. As such, the Corps cannot
ini •aspart of the ongoing construction unless it receives specific
cost -share the dune's repair g g
authorization from Washington ashin on DC. Such authorization, if given, would be too late to join the
project. The Corps can, however, include the dune repair in
dune repair to the current dredging p � p
the ongoing construction if (1) qthe work is requested by the City, and (2) the City provides the
funds for the work, in advance.
olsen associates, inc. I
2618 Herschel Street I Jacksonville, FL 32204 1904.387.6114 I FAX 904.384.7368
www.olsen-associates.com
Page 2 of 3
October 12, 2016
'dunes to theirpre-storm level of protection, more or less,
The estimated cost to repair the
renourishment contract is $6,200,000. That amount includes
through the ongoing beach it contract, rather
planting might be done directly by C y$800,000 allowance for pia g sea oats non-
federalincludes an estimated requirement of $900,000 additional
than through the Corps); and, it of the dunes by
cost share to restore the sand that was eroded from the beach in front
Hurricane Matthew.
this eligible for State cost -share, typically at about 50% co-
fundingAll of expenditure would be elig � beach
46.9% cost-shareper the City's current grant Agreement for be
(or, at least State cost sha Y
expenditure of $6.2M could be potentially reimbursed by about
management). Thus, the City's must be
g
the State's approval and allocation. Pragmatically, this m •
$2.9M from the State, subject to pp in a timely
•because the State cannot otherwise provide its funds, up -front,
a reimbursement enough
fashion to include the dune work in the ongoing construction.
is expenditure, in whole or part, might be reimbursed (or,
It also possible that the City's • • to repair the
• the Corps of Engineers — if the additional work p
credited against future work) byg Washington/
• eligiblefor federal funding. This will be determined at theg
storm erosion is deemed that,federal
• decision will not be known for several months. Beyond
Congressional level, but a because the beach is
• for the dune repairs is not anticipated (principallY
funding from FEMA p fundingwould be too late to
bytheCorps);
otherwise maintained and, in any event, FEMA
include the dune repairs in the ongoing construction.
• 'Corps cannot direct the contractor to rebuild the dunes or
Timeliness is critical. The to do so;
_condition unless it has the non-federal funds in hand
repair the beach to its pre storm work
p
0.8M for dune vegetation). The contractor needs to restart
i.e., $5.4M (which excludes $ shoreline per
sandplacement that progresses along 500+ feet of
immediately —proceeding with dunes along
• go "backward" and place additional sand or rebuild
day. The contractor cannot
• alreadyconstructed. (It is not practical to do so.)
The contractor cannot
beach areas that are
delay the work because the equipment is due at numerous other sites immediately afterDuval.
asThe alternative means to rebuild the dunes (such bytruck-haul -haul fill from upland sand.
• sources)will cost at least twice as much than the values
sources,or placement from other dredge
' of sand will bepoorer, and the disruption to the community
estimated above —and the quality ll be substantial — relative to incorporating the dune repairs airs to
will be greater, and the delays will
the Corps' ongoing beach renourishment contract.
not been instructed to begin dune repairs, another
For every day that the contractor has to
with no dune reparations. Accordingly, if the dunes are
500+ feet of shoreline shall be passedp • economicallyrepaired now — with the dredge that is currently working
here
be expeditiously and p .—
Citywork now,of which $5.4M will be provided to the
—then the must allocate $6.2M for the
As noted above, State and/or federal cost -share
Corps and $0.8M applied to dune vegetation.
may reimburse a substantial amount of these funds in the near-term. But State or federal funds
cannot initiate the work now, and now is when it must be done.
2 olsen associates, inc.
Page 3 of 3
October 12, 2016
• Currydiscuss the City's immediate needs and plans for
the
recommend that Mayor Y
• Governor's office. Through this, the City may better
the dune restoration directly with the via
' i ated commitment to cost -share in the work (presurnably
appreciate the State's anticipated of the necessityfor timely
Meantime, the Corps of Engineers is fully aware
reimbursement). Mean �
funding and commencement act immediately the dune repair, and is prepared to upon the
City's direction.
• observations do not include dune or beach repairs
Finally, note that these values and 18th '(Le., north of about 18Street Atlantic Beach, or along
be and the present renourishment area
Y
etcetera). It is my opinion that beach reparations along these
Hanna Park or Huguenot Park, )
efficiently, practically, addressed through other mechanisms outside
other areas will be most effic y� or included above,
ch renourishment contract. The costs for that work are not
the Corps'current beach q
but the timing requirements are less urgent than those outlined above.
Please do not hesitate to contact me at
[or cell phone (904) 307-9522] if you have
recommendations. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Kevin R. Bodge, Ph.D., P.E.
Senior Vice President, Principal Engineer II
kbodge@olsen-associates.com or (904) 387-6114
any questions regarding these observations and
Cc: Jason Harrah, US Army Corps of Engineers, Jacksonville District
•
3 olsen associates, inc.