Beach restoration on course to begin Monday
The long-awaited Estero Island Beach Restoration project on the northern 1.2-mile section of Fort Myers Beach is expected to begin on Monday (April 18) with the construction of a terminal jetty at Bowditch Point, according to Lee County Coastal Engineer Robert Neal.
The jetty, which is estimated to take until mid-September to construct, will be a rock structure measuring an estimated 240 feet long at the crest by 48 feet wide at the base. It will be perpendicular to the shoreline and extend above mean high water.
The first step of the jetty construction is the installation of a vinyl sheet pile wall that is being placed along the center of the jetty to prohibit sand from being transported into Matanzas Channel. It will be armored on both sides by different-size stones.
According to the Estero Island Restoration progress report, Coastal Marine Construction of Venice (subcontractor) conducted the stone drop test on Tuesday, April 5. Eleven rocks were dropped onto a steel plate to check the fracture strength, and 10 of the samples passed the test without fracturing or chipping.
Modifications to the design position may be needed due to current conditions of the beach.
Regarding the sand placement part of the project, Dredge & Dock LLC, the main contractor, has begun mobilization activities and is presently in the county assembling pipeline and making arrangements. Sand placement, which is anticipated to begin May 1 with a project completion time of 150 calendar days, will be conducted in tandem with the jetty construction.
Expect the assembled pipeline and much of the equipment involved in the restoration project to be transported by water to the project site.
“There will be a few trucks transporting fuel coming over the bridge, but we do not anticipate 18-wheelers,” said Neal, the project manager. “Everything they can do by boat, they are going to do by boat.”
The project, which was first slated to begin March 15, was pushed back a month due to a subcontractor problem. That delay was a relief to some businesses on the North Estero Boulevard stretch who feared having mobilized equipment on the beachfront during tourist season.
The current project amount is estimated to cost between $3.7 to $4 million with a maximum of $2 million coming from the state of Florida, $750,000 from West Coast Inland Navigation District, $110,224 from the Town of Fort Myers and the remaining amount from the county.
“I think it is going to be a great project for that particular part of the island,” said Neal. “I think we are going to extend the beach considerably and place a lot of new sand out there. I think it will be great for the residents and businesses in that section as well as the tourists. We’re going to see a great change in the beach between now and September.”
For more information, go to www.leeounty.com/gov/dept/NaturalResources/Marine/Pages/EsteroIsland.aspx.