Beach project nears its start on Captiva and Sanibel

Total cost to surpass $19.5 million.

By Kevin Lollar

Captiva and Sanibel islands will soon be getting a bunch of new beach.

If all goes as planned, Great Lakes Dredge & Dock of Oak Brook, Ill., will begin pumping 725,000 cubic yards of sand onto Captiva‘s beach, from Redfish Pass to Blind Pass, and 75,000 cubic yards along 6,330 feet of Sanibel’s beach, starting at Blind Pass.

“Residents and business owners on Captiva welcome beach nourishment,” said Kathy Rooker, administrator of the Captiva Erosion Prevention District. “Our people are pretty savvy about it. They know the value of it. As one person told me, it’s expected and accepted.”

Construction of the project will cost $19.5 million; at this point, the total cost, which includes surveying and monitoring the beach and planting vegetation, is not known.

Lee County will chip in $6.1 million from tourism taxes, and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection will add $4.6 million.

The rest will be covered by the erosion district, which taxes Captiva property owners for beach projects.