City explores Lido shoreline committee

A judge has not yet weighed in on the city’s plan to renourish Lido Key with sand from Big Pass, but City Manager Tom Barwin isn’t waiting for a decision to take action designed to help preserve the barrier island’s shores.

In January, Barwin spoke at a Lido Key Residents Association meeting. There, he heard about residents’ ongoing anxiety regarding the status of their shoreline. Shortly after that meeting, he reached out to the association with an idea for addressing that anxiety.

His proposal: A citizen-led shoreline protection committee. The goal, he said, was to create a better link of communication between Lido residents and city staff regarding the status of Lido’s beaches. The group could keep an eye out for any changes and better explore opportunities for making sure the island’s shoreline was well maintained.

Even if the proposed Big Pass dredge is approved and funded — creating a 50-year plan for managing the Lido shoreline alongside the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers — Barwin said shoreline protection will remain a long-term challenge for city officials.

“We want to be sure we are as far ahead of the curve as we can be — embracing the activity that’s going to inevitably have to occur here to be sure we can keep our facilities safe, sound and above water,” Barwin said.

He met with a group of Lido Key residents Monday to pitch the concept. Although the idea is still in a preliminary phase, he said the group was receptive. He’s optimistic city staff and Lido residents will be able to find a useful model for monitoring and protecting the barrier island’s shoreline.

“I think we were all in agreement that we, collectively, need to be more proactive,” Barwin said. “From monitoring to measuring to communicating and working overtime to be sure we stay ahead of the challenges coming.”

Lido Key Residents Association President Carl Shoffstall agreed the concept could become a useful vehicle for staying on top of shoreline-related issues. He said the association’s beach committee were determining what the final product should look like.

Barwin said he was open to suggestions for how the committee would function within the purview of city government. A formal committee with an assigned staff liaison could meet regularly and report directly to the City Commission. Or, a less formal group of residents could meet among themselves and check in periodically with city officials.

Despite a lack of detail, Shoffstall was also optimistic about what the group could produce.

“I think it’s going to be good — and going down the road, I think it’s something that’s going to be necessary,” Shoffstall said.

Barwin agreed that any committee would need to be a long-term institution to deal with ongoing issues related to climate change. Although the city manager expressed a desire to ultimately address shoreline issues on a regional basis, he felt compelled to get started on ways to help the most affected segment of the city as soon as possible.

“We’ll start now, and hopefully eventually move forward with others in our region,” Barwin said. “Ten years from now, I think people will be very happy something like this started.”