Allow private seawall on a public beach?

Beach Fanatic

Apr 10, '06 · 4:02 PM5,269

County Commissioner Meeting
Tuesday, April 11th at the South Walton Courthouse Annex. 4 PM.

Should a private seawall illegally installed on a public beach be permitted to remain on public property?

This issue is a test of this County Commission's oath to be custodians of the public property.

Also note: One of the commissioners, Ro Cuchens, owns the company that installed the illegal wall.

The slogan of residents that want the seawall removed is:
?Mr. Cuchens, tear down that wall?. :clap_1:

Below is an excerpt from the South Walton Community council position. http://www.southwaltoncc.org/

"Seawalls are intended to protect vulnerable upland structures. They do not protect the beach.

.....documents published by both U.S. Fish & Wildlife and the DEP indicate that coastal armoring ?can result in accelerated erosion seaward of the hardened structure and adjacent to the structure, especially on the downdrift side (end scour)?

It is unfortunate that neither the engineer nor the contractor *verified the gulf front property line of these lots before constructing the walls. To build the walls without updating the affected property line was a business risk that they chose to take.

The result was that they built their walls anywhere from 28? to 40? onto their neighbor?s property. *The neighbor happens to be the public....
Aside from the property rights issue of a private landowner encroaching onto public land, state law requires that ?armoring shall be sited a sufficient distance inside the property boundaries to prevent destabilizing the beach and dune system on adjacent properties or increasing erosion of such properties during a storm event.?

We do not see how the county can authorize these walls to remain on public property."

Please call the commissioners to voice your opinion.

If possible come to the meeting--it should be very interesting.
I hope someone will be selling popcorn at the door. :popcorn:

Commissioner Brannon
19367 U.S. Hwy 331 S
Freeport, FL 32439
Tel: (850) 835-4860
Fax: (850) 835-4836
E-mail:* brascott@co.walton.fl.us

*Commissioner Pridgen
Address:
17400 State Highway 83 North
DeFuniak Springs, FL 32433
Phone: (850) 834-6328
Fax: (850) 834-6385
Email: prikenneth@co.walton.fl.us

Commissioner Larry Jones **
Contact Information
Donna Walsinkham, District 3*Executive Assistant
1483 County Highway 1087
DeFuniak Springs, FL. 32435
Phone: (850) 892-8474
Fax: (850)892-8475
e-mail: jonlarry@co.walton.fl.us

Contact Information
Commissioner Cuchens can be reached at (850) 835-4834.
His office is located at 417 Highway 20 East in Freeport.
Email: cucro@co.walton.fl.us

Commissioner Cindy Meadows
90 Spires Lane, Unit 7-A
Santa Rosa Beach, FL. 32459
Phone: (850) 622-3059
Fax: (850) 622-3067
e-mail:* meacindy@co.walton.fl.us

Replies

Beach Crab

Apr 13, '06 · 2:32 PM#27

All the beach erosion problems started LONG before any retaining walls were erected. You may be right about one thing... that assuming the rate of erosion of the beaches continues on its current course, eventually the beach will disappear.

Pardon me stepping in, but this is an uninformed response, or at the least only paints half the picture. The other side of erosion is called accretion, and the balance of the two have sustained beaches for millions of years. If one were to follow the logic of this poster, we should have no beaches at all, anywhere, as erosion has been happening forever, due to various artificial and natural means. Florida has been eroding all our lives, but the beaches have remained wherever flexibility of coastline was retained- even where there has been significant erosion- because accretion occurs on the backside of the process. The key to allowing accretion is to keep the shoreline free of hard structure. This can be accomplished by nourishment or by rebuilding further back from the dune line. At this point we are all in a state of panic and denial. Soon a critical mass of understanding will emerge to support this thinking. It's time to buck up and take the hit, and that goes across the board. Let's wake up. Thank you for letting me voice my opinion in this forum.

Beach Fanatic

Apr 13, '06 · 3:55 PM#28

Here's one that might help your therapist bills and make some others feel a little better. It has to do with what BMBV and John R have been discussing as the major source of coastal erosion in Florida.

If you read the state's entire report on the erosion, it is broken down into 7 sub-regions within the state. The three major sources in the report are tropical storms, hurricanes and dredged inlets. The dredged inlets inhibit natural beach renourishment since they prevent the sand from naturally moving past the inlet and settling on the downstream beaches - it settles out in the inlets instead. Without the inlets there would be more of a balance in the natural erosion/nourishment cycle in non-tropical storm/hurricane conditions. What this means is that the beach shouldn't disappear in front of a seawall (or retaining wall) placed in an area that is not affected by inlets during normal conditions. Repeat....normal conditions.

Here's the part to make some of us feel a little better: the 30-A (or thereabouts) section of Walton County is not affected by dredged inlets according to the state's report. We still have the tropical storms and hurricanes to deal with (which would erode the dunes further back anyway), but at least there's some good news here. :clap_1:

Go To Page 6 - Pleistocene Mainland

SoWal Insider

Apr 13, '06 · 4:10 PM#29

Here's one that might help your therapist bills and make some others feel a little better. It has to do with what BMBV and John R have been discussing as the major source of coastal erosion in Florida.

If you read the state's entire report on the erosion, it is broken down into 7 sub-regions within the state. The three major sources in the report are tropical storms, hurricanes and dredged inlets. The dredged inlets inhibit natural beach renourishment since they prevent the sand from naturally moving past the inlet and settling on the downstream beaches - it settles out in the inlets instead. Without the inlets there would be more of a balance in the natural erosion/nourishment cycle in non-tropical storm/hurricane conditions. What this means is that the beach shouldn't disappear in front of a seawall (or retaining wall) placed in an area that is not affected by inlets during normal conditions. Repeat....normal conditions.

Here's the part to make some of us feel a little better: the 30-A (or thereabouts) section of Walton County is not affected by dredged inlets according to the state's report. We still have the tropical storms and hurricanes to deal with (which would erode the dunes further back anyway), but at least there's some good news here. :clap_1:

Go To Page 6 - Pleistocene Mainland

Nice post. I read some report/study on the DEP's site from 1998 or so in which it appeared Walton County had no history of ongoing erosion issues. Meaning, without the heavy storm activity, the beaches don't need our help. Here's hoping that Bermuda High has shifted and sends much of the hurricane activity elsewhere for awhile. Hard not to be concerned about those Gulf temps though. :shock:

Beach Fanatic

Apr 13, '06 · 11:51 PM#30

I happen to be one of those bad gulf front property owners who had a retaining wall built to save my family's 30 year old home. We were at least 300 feet farther back then, maybe more. I had a choice - let the house fall into the gulf or try to save the place. What would you do?
The only real solution to the huge problem is for the beaches to be renourished. If they are not renourished then the future of South Walton is in jeopardy. Beach renourishment is the bottom line for us all.
Having property on the beach is no piece of cake - believe me. I rent the house during the season to meet expenses - which are huge.

beacheart,

Is there any possibility of you having some photos from 30 years ago and some from today that you could share with us?

I know that I personally would GREATLY appreciate seeing them.

Thanks in advance!!

BMBV

Beach Fanatic

Apr 14, '06 · 1:04 AM#31

....These so called beach front owners actually do not even own the bluff face on which they placed their seawalls.

They built an enormous seawall that extends far out onto the beach.

Ecopal,

Your love for adjectives humbles me. Problem is they're difficult to gauge how much "much" is (other thread), how enormous "enourmous" is and now how far "far" is (as in "extends far out onto the beach"). But you're entitled to your opinions, of course.

beacheart responded that the wall is just 16 feet out from his home. I am assuming we're talking about the same group of homes. If I'm incorrect in my assumption, either you or beacheart please correct me.

Do you consider the fact that his wall being just 16 feet from his structure qualifies as extending "far out onto the beach"? The rest of it appears to be beautiful white sand dunes which I'm sure even the turtles would appreciate !

needs to get out more

Apr 14, '06 · 8:33 AM#32

We built a Northstar wall - only 16 feet from the front of the house and filled in with white sand. Also am doing dune restoration. It is too bad some of the contractors were so irresponsible but ours was very responsible and followed the rules.

beachart, thanks for the reply. glad you found an upstanding contractor. good luck with your restoration, and thanks for using white sand.

jr

Beach Fanatic

Apr 15, '06 · 11:51 AM#33

Here's one that might help your therapist bills and make some others feel a little better. It has to do with what BMBV and John R have been discussing as the major source of coastal erosion in Florida.

If you read the state's entire report on the erosion, it is broken down into 7 sub-regions within the state. The three major sources in the report are tropical storms, hurricanes and dredged inlets. The dredged inlets inhibit natural beach renourishment since they prevent the sand from naturally moving past the inlet and settling on the downstream beaches - it settles out in the inlets instead. Without the inlets there would be more of a balance in the natural erosion/nourishment cycle in non-tropical storm/hurricane conditions. What this means is that the beach shouldn't disappear in front of a seawall (or retaining wall) placed in an area that is not affected by inlets during normal conditions. Repeat....normal conditions.

Here's the part to make some of us feel a little better: the 30-A (or thereabouts) section of Walton County is not affected by dredged inlets according to the state's report. We still have the tropical storms and hurricanes to deal with (which would erode the dunes further back anyway), but at least there's some good news here. :clap_1:

Go To Page 6 - Pleistocene Mainland

pgurney:

Most excellent find and post. I am a more enlightened person now.

Regarding St. Andrews Beach and significant causes of erosion....
"Erosion is attributed to tropical storms, hurricanes and the effects of St. Andrews Inlet."

Regarding Walton County beaches and significant causes of erosion....
"Erosion is attributed to tropical storms and hurricanes."

Now we have an idea as to how far the beaches "downstream" are indeed affected by inlets.

This is exactly what your synopsis is.

Oh yea...Pleistocene Mainland. That's what I should have been calling our sticky yellow sand bluffs all along! Geology can be interesting.

Thank you again.
BMBV

Beach Crab

Oct 20, '07 · 10:46 AM#34

View attachment 6829

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View attachment 6832Walls on the beach, The owners think there great. I think they are ugly and I have never seen such greed from both the owners on the beach and the county commissioners. If anyone really beleives these walls will protect these home you must be out of your minds. The next big storm will wash these away. If peers, oil platfoa :lol:

rms can be destroyed these walls are useless. And as far as being on the countys and public beach these should be removed at once and would be if there was not something in it for the commissioners. These commissioner all they know how to do is count money and spend ours. The storms put casinos on top of hotels. Leveled w :floor:

hole areas. Armored walls just thinking silly.

SoWal Expert

Oct 22, '07 · 10:19 AM#35

While I feel sorry for those whose homes are threatened by erosion and storms, that doesn't mean they get to extend their property onto the beach and then say "oops" or ask for millions of dollars to be spent to unnaturally protect their property. With apologies to "field of dreams", if you build it, it's your fault!

News flash - water erodes soil! This is true everywhere - even when there isn't a tropical storm or hurricane involved! That's why you leave a buffer zone.

I'm really getting sick of the constant conflicts of interest when the commissioners are voting on the actions of one of their own! :angry:

Edited Oct 22, '07 · 12:35 PM