Does the city have a “lust for mud?”

Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
April 5, 2017 1:12 p.m.

Fernandina Beach City Marina manager Joe Springer had the unenviable task of trying to brief the Fernandina Beach City Commission (FBCC) on the current situation of the marina and prospects for improvement at their April 4, 2017 Regular Meeting.   And the future right now looks as clear as … well, mud.

Springer, who manages the marina on behalf of Westrec, explained that the plans for increasing services and profitability of the marina collapsed last fall when Hurricane Matthew destroyed docks, disrupted water, electric and fuel lines, and in effect shut down marina operations. Springer reduced his staff from eight to two, and his monthly income dropped to $200. Thanks to a series of smaller repairs, monthly income is now up to $6,000 and Springer has been able to bring back another employee.

But the unpredictability of many factors beyond Springer’s or Westrec’s control makes the marina’s recovery murky at this time.

While the plan to add 55 more mooring balls to the marina is still on track, plans to move the marina to the north and/or dredge the south basin are dependent on permits from the Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), release of FEMA funds and additional grant moneys. There are no hard and fast time frames for ACE or FEMA actions.

The city has $300K available for dredging now, with a possibility of an additional $300K this fall. The possibility for major dredging of the south basin, which would deepen the existing marina by 8 feet, has been advocated by Florida Inland Navigation Commissioner Lynn Williams and others who would like to see such action accompanied by a realignment of the docks. Eliminating the perpendicular docks after the dredging would increase water flow through the marina and extend the intervals between required maintenance dredging.

But some in the community, including Commissioner Tim Poynter, question the wisdom of spending a million dollars or more on dredging the south basin since the city has purchased deepwater property to the north for the purpose of moving the marina north.

Springer agreed with Poynter that moving north makes the most sense, but his question is “When?” Springer said, “If we had a firm date, I would go along with that. But will it be 3-4 weeks from now or months or years down the road? I can’t wait for everything to line up. In the short term, we must do something—or shut down. Currently boaters must rely on the tides to be able to avoid the mud flats.”

With the realignment of existing docks, Springer said that he would be able to provide 600 linear feet of docking space.

City Manager Dale Martin, in response to a question from Commissioner John Miller, reinforced Springer’s statement about a lack of timetable from ACE or FEMA. He said that the cost figure for dredging and realignment of the docks in the south basin is $1.1M. FEMA is currently assessing whether to fund repair or replacement actions. He said that if FEMA decides that the damage is greater than 50 percent, it will authorize replacement, which would mean that the city could use FEMA money to realign docks. Martin said he is also investigating the possibility of repurposing some grant money to be able to restore the gas lines.

Vice Mayor Len Kreger requested an accounting of recent grants, claiming that there are a lot of unknowns with how much money has been spent and for what purpose. He expressed concerns about “flexibility” of grant money. Springer agreed to provide the requested information.

The line of the evening was delivered by local attorney Clinch Kavanaugh, who during public comment, declared, “This city has a bizarre lust for mud.” He went on to cite waterfront history back to the days of David Yulee. Kavanaugh expressed frustration with repeated attempts to defy nature in trying to eliminate the siltation problem in the south basin. “We have progressed from the Magic Mud Machine to the Magical Mud Hole,” Kavanaugh said, a reference to efforts of Lynn Williams to remove mud from the marina. Kavanaugh declared, “The taxpayers are getting tired of digging a hole and letting Mother Nature fill it back up. A million dollars here, a million dollars there—and it still doesn’t fix the problem. You have to go north to deep water! It’s unnatural the lust this city has for this mud. But remember this: mud is bad; water is good. If you follow that simple rule, you’ll go north. And that’s the only thing that makes any sense.”

Lynn Williams also spoke. He addressed Poynter’s concern that the city spends $400K every other year to dredge the south basin. He said that the amount was actually $315K, with half of it being funded with a FIND grant. Breaking this down annually showed that the city’s annual cost was only something like $70K. “The city marina makes enough money to pay for that,” Williams said. Williams went on to say he believed it was important to expand the marina, and that even with expanding the marina ultimately to the north for bigger, transient boats, the south basin would be available for smaller boats.

Editor’s Note: Suanne Z. Thamm is a native of Chautauqua County, NY, who moved to Fernandina Beach from Alexandria,VA, in 1994. As a long time city resident and city watcher, she provides interesting insight into the many issues that impact our city. We are grateful for Suanne’s many contributions to the Fernandina Observer.