Lido Key Beach Renourishment Update from City Manager Tom Barwin

Lido Beach - Progress Report    Those heading out to Lido Beach will enjoy a refreshed beach, which is now providing a much needed buffer between the Gulf of Mexico and nearby public infrastructure.  The emergency renourishment, using sand recycled from the New Pass channel, is approximately 40 percent finished, and the results are calming and providing us with a great amount of relief.    Dredging crews have completed the beach adjacent to the pavilion and concession stand and are continuing to work southward averaging about 150 feet of shoreline a day.   Before and after photos highlight the critical need to restore this buffer, which also is home to much sea life, including turtles and wading birds.    Lido Beach in November 2018 compared to January 2019.      Even without tropical weather directly impacting the Sarasota area last summer, the beach erosion was significant.  Going into hurricane season in June, Lido Beach will be restored and we will be in a much safer position to be protected from whatever Mother Nature brings.   Last week, 12th Circuit Court Judge Andrea McHugh ruled in favor of the City in a lawsuit filed by the Siesta Key Association in connection with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' long-term restoration project.  The Corps tells us they're on track to begin renourishment in September, then replace sand on an as-needed basis rather than waiting for the beach to erode to a critically dangerous point.  Once again, we pledge to collaborate with all interested parties to monitor the shorelines, boating channels and environment at unprecedented levels and adapt to the threat of rising sea levels.