SARASOTA, Fla. — Hurricane season is here, yet one project many Sarasota residents anticipated to help curb flooding this year won't be happening as quickly as anticipated.
In March, the County Commission directed staff to pursue emergency dredging for Phillippi Creek.
In April, the county submitted a permit request to dredge parts of the creek.
WATCH: Dredging on Sarasota's Phillippi Creek won't happen until after hurricane season 2025
“The Army Corps denied our application for a short-duration emergency authorization, and we are processing the application through an expedited standard permit process,” Sarasota County Public Works Administrator Spencer Anderson explained.
Anderson says the county cannot move forward with dredging without approval from the federal government.
“At this point, the public notification was issued last Friday. That's a 30-day process. Then it goes to a commenting agency, the National Marine Fisheries Service, which, unfortunately, they take a long time to provide their review of protective species," he said.
Dredging is rare for Phillippi Creek dredging. Anderson detailed that the county's 2001 ordinance established a resident-initiated petition-driven process for dredging services. He pointed out that county efforts in this area have been limited due to a lack of support from property owners for dredging projects.
“If they happen to get a permit before our high spot dredging commences,” he said, “we will utilize their permit to begin our entire high spot project, which will be funded through the stormwater assessment revenues."
Anderson explained that while current funding and permits are interrelated, “we are upping our resources at the moment.”
Anderson explained that other projects are underway to address the concerns posed by this hurricane season.
Since June 1, the stormwater team has accomplished nearly 2,000 maintenance tasks, demonstrating their commitment to maintaining drainage systems and channels, according to Anderson.
Specific areas of focus included the Bell Avenue region, where contractors are currently working to address roadside ditch conditions. The county has also undertaken sediment removal efforts, with over 65 cubic yards removed from Cow Pen Slough and an additional 1,000 cubic yards from beneath Beneva Road on Phillippi Creek recently.
The county has a team of 87 working.
Yet, after hurricane season 2024, the county is stressing that a big issue was the sheer total of rainfall.
Anderson warns that “historical flooding of Philippine Creek is a long-term issue” rooted in patterns of severe weather.
“When we get 10 inches of rainfall in 24 hours, that is our level of service for the county, and that is not intended to flood.”
Yet, the people who live near the creek aren't happy to hear the latest.
Andrew Lyman is frustrated with what he says is the county's slow response.
"It is very disappointing that the level of attention has not been given to really addressing the issues that are keeping our neighborhoods safe," Lyman stated. "The complacency that has set in on the maintenance of the stormwater in our community is really disappointing," he added, emphasizing the need for responsibly managed infrastructure.
Lyman lives in the Artistry neighborhood. No homes were flooded there, but access to the neighborhood was flooded. Just beside his neighborhood sits Laurel Meadows. All but one house in the neighborhood took on catastrophic flooding levels. The water stayed in the neighborhood for days.
"I was the neighborhood captain for Rotary. We sent our boat in here before the county even sent a boat in," he said.
Lyman says no one should go through what he saw after Debbie.
"I tell you what, if you've never had your heart broken, your heart will absolutely break when you take somebody's household and completely take it and pull it to the curb and then take their house and rip out four feet of sheet rock and see the devastation of those lives," he said.
Now he's concerned that waters could rise again, this time impacting even more neighborhoods.
Miles Toder, who also lives along Phillippi Creek, highlighted the lack of strategic planning and communication from the county following recent press conferences.
While he appreciated the inclusion of county officials in public discussions, Toder noted that the format and setting could be improved for better engagement with the public.
"The messaging that came from that...still, it's a good start, but the county needs to be better at communicating with the residents," he said.
Toder also views this as a way to highlight the need for increased county representation and resources to address the growing challenges posed by storms and development.
"I think we need a bigger county government," he stated, advocating for a dedicated stormwater management department, which he believes is sorely overdue.
Sarasota County Assistant County Administrator Mark Cunningham addressed plans to develop a separate Stormwater Department.
“The Board gave me direction to take the steps to prepare a plan to create a separate stormwater department,” Cunningham stated.
The plan is set to be presented during budget workshops later this week.
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