Dear Friends and Neighbors:
Welcome to Volume 13 of my Naples City Council Newsletter.
Right now, my sense is that much of Naples is still focused on the aftermath and impact of recent storm events – five hurricanes in three years – and what can be done to protect their home or condo building from future flooding and damage (not to mention rapidly rising property insurance premiums and condo assessments).
As we move toward the end of season, this is a good time to take a look at what is being done to allow our beaches and coastline to recover and what kind of planning is needed for the future.
Here are a few headlines:
1. Beach Renourishment: Collier County is well underway with a major effort to renourish all the county’s beaches after Hurricanes Helene and Milton in fall 2024. This is particularly important to the City of Naples, which has the great majority of publicly accessible beach ends in the county.
The project is centered in the Park Shore area, where the need for sand replacement was greatest. The goal of that $5.5 million project is to restore the Park Shore beach to its standard 85-foot width in an area stretching from just north of Naples Cay to the Lausanne Condominiums to the south.
But this is part of a larger comprehensive initiative first contemplated after Hurricane Ian in late 2022 to rebuild dunes and plant vegetation to strengthen dune durability. This effort stretches from Barefoot Beach at the north end of Collier County to Marco Island and entails sand replacement, dune reconstruction, and the introduction of hundreds of thousands of new plants (Sea oats, Bitter Panicum, Sea Purslane, and other species) to stabilize the dunes.
The goal of the project, which has also benefitted from the advice and expertise of The Naples Botanical Gardens, is to protect our beaches from immediate threats, defined as the risk of a five-year flood. In today’s world of more frequent and intensive storm events, ongoing restoration of our beaches will be necessary. The current project should be completed by May.
For additional information, contact Collier County Coastal Zone Management Section Manager, Andy Miller, at 239-252-2922.
2. Beach End Access and Reconstruction: Speaking of Naples’ battered beach ends, I can happily report that a long-awaited construction contract will be awarded by City Council next month. This work should begin shortly thereafter.
This project was ready to begin last fall but then delayed until now by the damage caused by Hurricanes Helene and Milton and the need to re-scope and re-permit the planned improvements.
There are some 32 beach ends in the City of Naples that will be repaired under this contract. The plan is to have our contractor address “two at a time” in order to minimize the overall impact to beach access for the public. The goal is to move quickly and have most if not all of this work completed by the end of the year.
Residents should also be aware that this work does not include Lowdermilk Park or the 8th Avenue South Beach End. Both have already been repaired twice in the last three years (after Ian and again after Helene/Milton). This work is now essentially complete, more good news for residents and visitors.
The City will continue to issue regular updates on the project schedule, beach end closures, and timelines. For more information, use this link:
https://www.naplesgov.com/parksrec/page/public-beach-accesses-beach-ends-project
3. Gulf Shore Boulevard Beach Outfalls Project: Construction began on March 3 for the Naples Beach Restoration & Water Quality Improvements Project (AKA known as the Beach Outfalls Project). The benefits of the project include reduced flood risk for our residents, improved water quality through treatment, and improved aesthetics and safer conditions on our beaches.
This long-contemplated initiative replaces the eight (8) aging, deteriorated outfall pipes on Naples beaches with new pipes that will go under the sand more than 1,000 feet into the Gulf.
In addition, the project will replace the current gravity-based stormwater management system in the area to be served with pump stations that will be able to better collect stormwater during heavy rain events.
Finally, the water that is collected and discharged through the outfall pipes will be much cleaner than the current system, given the treatment program that is being implemented.
The first phase of the project began on 3rd Street North between Broad Avenue North and 1st Avenue South and will proceed from north to south. Construction will include replacement of stormwater pipes and inlets followed by roadway milling and paving. This phase will take approximately six months and will involve some lane closures and detours, as well as impacts on driveway access.
Subsequent phases will focus on Gulf Shore Boulevard and on 3rd Avenue North and 8th Avenue North beach access ends, where the new pump stations will be located.
For more and continuing information on this project, go to: https://www.naplesbeachimprovements.com/
4. Flood Mitigation Methods for Residential Buildings: At the forefront of the minds of many Naples residents right now is what practical steps they can take to mitigate flood risk for their homes or condo buildings as we look ahead to the next hurricane season. Given the events of the past three years, we can all relate to this.
In recent months, many residents and condo associations have learned about new floodproofing options available to single-family homes and condominium buildings. The most common is flood panels although that method takes various forms.
Residents and condo associations have begun to work with different vendors and contractors about the possible installation of different products. This has prompted our City Building and Fire Departments, working under guidance we have received from the Florida Department of Emergency Management, the Florida Building Code, and the National Flood Insurance Program, to communicate more effectively with residents and associations on what is and isn’t permitted.
Among other matters, residents should know that a building permit is required prior to any installation. Applications should be accompanied by a structural analysis prepared by a qualified design or engineering professional.
A serious consequence of the City failing to meet state and federal requirements is higher insurance premiums for all policies, including flood, not just for the City of Naples itself but for all our residents.
Our City staff is attuned to these concerns and continues to identify ways that residents can install flood panels and other protective alternatives in their homes and condos without undue bureaucratic requirements. This is a new technology that is rapidly evolving and much will be learned soon about the applicability and effectiveness of different products.
To access City guidance on this matter, use this link:
https://www.naplesgov.com/building
5. Naples Pier Reconstruction: One piece of discouraging news has been the continued delay in the reconstruction of our iconic Naples Pier. The hold-up is the issuance of the final major permit for the project from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
City staff and consultants are working hard to gain this approval, which was expected months ago. Once the permit is issued, it will allow the City to quickly finalize other minor permitting actions and complete negotiations with FEMA on cost-sharing for the rebuild.
The estimated construction timeline is 18 months. Our hope remains that all permits and approvals will be in place by summer so we can still have a new pier by the end of 2026.
For continued updates on the Pier, go to:
https://www.naplesgov.com/publicworks/page/naples-pier-rebuild-information
6. Resiliency Planning for our community: I also want to share a few thoughts about the broader issue of coastal storm risk management, mitigating flood risk, and resiliency planning.
Recently, I had the opportunity to collaborate with the Gulf Shore Association of Condominiums (GSAC) HOA to hold and moderate a public forum on the topic of “Building Naples’ Coastal Resiliency”. The event attracted over 300 attendees that heard from a group of expert speakers who remained an additional hour to answer questions.
This was the third consecutive year I worked with GSAC to organize and hold this event. Prior year topics dealt with Water Quality (red tide and harmful algal blooms) and Climate Change Risk (sea level rise and warming ocean temperatures).
My central point to attendees was that the City of Naples was carrying out many initiatives to address issues of coastal flood risk but still needed an overall plan – a plan that could provide a roadmap forward for our community and the resources necessary to take action. I look forward to helping lead that effort on Council in the months ahead.
A video of the Forum and the presentations of the panelists are available through the GSAC website. Go to:
Finally, in closing, I want to make you aware of an upcoming program on Friday, March 21, titled “A Conversation with Local Leaders”. This event is sponsored by the Naples Speakers Series. I will be joined by Collier County Commissioner Dan Kowal to discuss issues facing the City of Naples and Collier County. Given the need for a close and collaborative working relationship between the City and County, I look forward to this opportunity.
The program will be held at the Naples Yacht Club. Doors will open at 8:30 am. For more information and registration details, go to naplesspeakerseries.com. If you have questions, send an email to Naplesspeakerseries@gmail.com.
I hope to see you there or elsewhere around town in the near future. As always, I welcome your comments or input on any matter.
Please contact me at rchristman@naplesgov.com or visit raychristman.com to see my current and past postings.
Best regards,
