Braden River erosion repairs near completion

LAKEWOOD RANCH — Spectrum Underground Inc. will finish repairing an eroded riverbank on the Braden River this week, in a project designed to prevent stormwater from flowing onto a nearby walking path and into a storm retention pond behind Greenbrook Adventure Park.

Spectrum Underground, the contractor hired by Lakewood Ranch Community Development District 4, began $75,000 in repairs in early January.

“The bank eroded way beyond what it should have been,” said Hondo Sunquist, vice president of Spectrum Underground. “This is a preventative measure using one of the better products around so that overflowing does not happen again.”

Repairs are intended to smooth the eroded bank and make it less steep.

To begin work, an eight-man team from Spectrum layered the slope with 400 tons of fill dirt — purchased for $3 per ton from Schroeder-Manatee Ranch — to create a smooth surface.

Workers then mounted articulating concrete, a mat of blocks that look like puzzle pieces, on top of the fill dirt.

During the last week of work, beginning Jan. 21, Spectrum was set to pour concrete onto the 3,000 square feet of mat, to anchor it and prevent it from moving.

The cells in the mat, square holes in each “puzzle piece,” will be filled with seeds to grow vegetation.

“It’s important that vegetation grows to hold the soil underneath the mat in place,” Sunquist said.

Sunquist’s crew worked daily during three weeks, excluding weekends, to perform the repairs. He says they will finish ahead of schedule.

The trail near the riverbank and behind the Adventure Park remained open during the process.

Contact Josh Siegel at [email protected].