Santa Rosa Shores residents high and dry
Association dealing with environmental concerns of canals, channels
BY BRADLEY "B.J." DAVIS, JR. Gulf Breeze News bjdavis@gulfbreezenews.com

Submitted Photo Because of incomplete construction and past storms, the canals of Santa Rosa Shores are in need of maintenance. ABOVE: the canal bottom is visible along residents' seawalls indicating shallow waterways which prevent some homeowners from using their boats. Association members are running into hurdles from environmental agencies preventing the much needed maintenance on the canals and outgoing channels.

Members of Santa Rosa Shores Homeowners' Association (SRSHA) are anxiously awaiting word from local environmental agencies to move forward with dredging maintenance on their canals.

Association members say unfinished construction of the original canals over three decades ago, natural tide effects and recent storms have left portions of some canals and the main outgoing channel unnavigable, leaving boaters high and dry.

"Over the years, the canals have become very uneven, making it very difficult to get in and out," said Jim Sturdevant of SRSHA. Sturdevant said the association has been working tirelessly with the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers as well as its own engineer Delta Seven Inc. to make the canals useable by boaters.

"There are processes that you have to get [approved] from DEP and the Army Corps of Engineers before touching the bottom of the waterways," said Sturdevant.

Sturdevant explained the association recognized the canals and outgoing channel issues in the early 1990s. It was then that SRSHA applied for a special Municipal Service Benefit Unit (MSBU), a special property tax to be applied for projects such as the canal maintenance, to expedite work on the canals. The principle hurdle SRSHA has encountered is destruction of naturally occurring sea grass found on portions of the Santa Rosa Sound where the canal's channel takes boaters into open waters.

"We had an engineering study done right after we got the MSBU. Delta Seven surveyed the bottom of the canals, depth of the channel and came up with a plan which would do the least amount of damage to the sea grass," said Sturdevant. He further explained that the firm suggested a plan to transplant sea grass in another part of the sound. Environmental officials claim this is easier said than done.

"The main issue of the dredging is the two acres of sea grass to create a channel. Sea grasses are a very tough thing to work with. It's not like working with other wetland vegetation. It's not a matter of replacing it somewhere else; sea grass is in certain locations for a reason," said Larry O'Donnell, Environmental Manager with DEP.

Sturdevant said the association always planned to assume the cost by funding the project itself with the help from the government.

"The thing that is so frustrating is that we're not asking any government entities to spend any money for this. We haven't asked the county, state or federal government for any money to do this project. We've offered to pay for this pilot project," he said. Sturdevant said that so far, $275,000 has been spent during the process, and government officials are concerned with continued project cost.

"This study process has been occurring over a long period of time," said County Commissioner John Broxson. "Due to the fact that fragile sea grass is heavily involved in the decision it is my take on the matter that as it currently stands there might be little possibility that ingress and egress through new dredging will occur. I gathered, particularly from the representative present from the Corp of Engineers to the Santa Rosa Shores Homeowners Association, in summary 'what part of no don't you understand?' I stand ready to help them in every way possible but cannot recommend the continual expenditure of big sums of money by Santa Rosa Shores unless there is overwhelming, convincing evidence presented to DEP and the Corp of Engineers that environmental degradation will not occur."

Sturdevant added that continued snags with environmental conditions are adding to the frustration.

"The general feeling is that the Corps and DEP want to drag this on so we'll run out of money," he said.

The pilot project includes mitigating any destruction of sea grass by replanting it in other areas of the sound. The permitting process by environmental agencies has taken its toll on association members over the past five years.

"I know I haven't spent the amount of time on any other project than this one over the past five years," said Ed Sarfert, Senior Project Manager with the Corps. He explained the association recently elected to withdrawal the application for the dredging permit to amend it to appease environmental standards. If the association submits the application and the Corps denies it, the process would begin at square one.

Sarfert said if fingers need to be pointed, it should be to those who have enticed homeowners into buying in that area under false pretenses.

"The blame goes to the people who have advertised deepwater access. Those real estate transactions have created some of the problem that people have had a false perception of what they were buying," said Sarfert. "One of the other things is there are a number of larger boats [in the canals] in the realm of four- to five-foot draft. The water depths of the Santa Rosa Sound don't support that draft very well." He echoed the remarks made by DEP officials that sea grass is a delicate matter.

"You can't have sea grass in an area where the conditions aren't right. It's very difficult to just create a sea grass meadow. That's one of the problems they have with the pilot project," he said.

Engineers of Delta Seven recognize the environmental concerns and plan to work with the agencies for the sake of making the waterways useable once again.

"The debate is going to be with the scientific data, not schoolyard tactics, and that's where we are right now. People have voiced uncertainties, but our environment is important enough not to deal with uncertainties," said Dr. Tom Cuba with Delta Seven. "We want to get to the point where there is reasonable assurance with what we want and what the homeowners want."

The bottom line for members of the association is the need for navigable canals and channels.

"I'm hoping to see that we follow through. Let's get the channel's marked and recognized," said Santa Rosa Shore resident Thurman Killen. Killen stated that fortunately, the canal depth where he lives is sufficient. However, his concern is also with the state of the outgoing channel.

"I understand the channel to the east of us is in pretty bad shape. It's pretty narrow," he said.