None of the Beach Restorations Post Ivan, Dennis, or Katrina Created any New Publicly Accessible Beaches on Perdido Key.....

According to our staff from environmental and also from our County Attorney's Office.

See the latest opinions from just this morning, below.

From the county attorney's office:

Commissioner:

 I agree with Tim’s opinion that public beach access was not created by the use of public funding to construct the emergency berm on Perdido Key following Hurricanes Ivan and Dennis.

 As you know, the boundary between private land and sovereign state land is the mean high-water line (MHWL).  It may help expand on Tim’s email to provide a brief explanation of how the MHWL is established and how it moves over time.

 The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration maintains series of water level monitoring stations off the coast of the Gulf of Mexico that measure the changes in the tides.  The tides are influenced by the moon, and the mean high-water level is calculated as the rolling average of the high tides over a 19-year period (which is one lunar cycle).  The intersection of the horizontal projection of the mean high-water level and the coastline forms the MHWL.

 As I mentioned in my earlier email, the MHWL moves as gradual imperceptible changes occur with the tidal average and the natural movement of the coastline through processes of erosion and accretion.  However, the MHWL does not change due to avulsion.  Avulsion is the sudden or perceptible loss or addition of land along the coastline; hurricanes and beach renourishment projects are considered avulsive events.  So, although the hurricanes may have perceptibly caused the beach to recede north, the MHWL remained in the same place after the hurricanes as it was the day before.  Accordingly, the renourishment projects that restored the emergency berm north of the MHWL on Perdido Key placed sand on private property, and it remained private property after the completion of the project.

 

Who is Doing the Recovery Work?

The county has engaged three firms to oversee the debris-removal portions of recovery from Hurricane Sally for which the Federal Government will ultimately reimburse Escambia County:

Roads Inc.

Ashbritt

Panhandle Paving and Grading

This weekend county staff reported on the subcontractors that have been engaged by each of these firms in this cleanup endeavor.  from the email

Zone 1 – Ashbritt

1. Added Roads as a contractor for final disposal
2. Interviewed a WBE for haul-out of mulch that turned down the work
3. Plans on extending rates to Bonner Tree Service once they begin work in Zone 1 parks

Zone 2 – Panhandle

Panhandle is utilizing the following local sub-contractors:

1. Creek Waste & Recycling – C&D Debris Hauling / Loading
2. BKW, Inc. – Vegetation Debris Hauling / Loading / Tree Removal - Cutting
3. Boyett’s Septic Tank and Portable Toilets
4. Nations Rent – Pensacola
5. Sunbelt Rental – Pensacola
6. SGC, Inc. (Carpentry) – FEMA Towers
7. TEC Equipment Rental – Pensacola
8. Thompson Cat Rental – Pensacola
9. Compu Graphics (Site Signage) – Pensacola
10. Outpost Rentals, Inc. (Equipment Rental)
11. Bay Area Blueprints – MAPS / Signage
12. ACME Rentals (MOT) – Pensacola

Notes:  No significant reported changes.  Note from Panhandle – Panhandle has received and corresponded with several other local contractors within multiple districts of the County, however most of these did not come to fruition as certain companies were unable to provide proper insurance, registrations, etc. and were unable to meet contract requirements.  We have kept notes on this information.  Furthermore, we have advised several of our out of town subcontractors to take calls, pursue local contractors as well. 

Zone 3 – Roads

Roads is utilizing the following local sub-contractors:

1. MO Construction
2. The Wallace Company
3. Cantonment Excavating
4. BKW Inc.
5. A & B Hauling
6. J & M Dozer
7. Gulf Atlantic Constructors
8. Floyd Construction
9. Dave Dunsford
10. United Rentals
11. Nova Engineering
12. Boyett’s Portable services
13. Sunbelt Rentals
14. Action Rental
15. Purifoy Construction, LLC
16. Arnett Construction Services, LLC
17. Charlie Heath, LLC