Lido Beach renourishment project officially complete

In what can be described as a chamber of commerce day, local, state and federal officials gathered Tuesday afternoon to cut the ribbon in celebration of the restoration of one of Sarasota’s important tourist attractions — Lido Beach.

After years of erosion and storm damage, beachgoers now have a wider, cleaner and softer beach to enjoy.

During the tropical weather body blows of 2024, Lido Beach experienced accelerated shoreline degradation. At a cost of $12 million paid for by federal funding, the project restored 1.2 miles of eroded shoreline from just north of Ted Sperling Park at South Lido Beach. 

“Since 2021 we've had multiple federally declared disasters, and we've had a lot of erosion of the sand,” said City Engineer Nikesh Patel. "After this project, we see that we've added approximately 60 to 100 feet of sand that's out there on Lido Beach.”

Photo by Andrew Warfield

Using sand from the New Pass dredging project, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers pumped some 300,000 cubic yards of sand south to the project area. The renourishment is being paired with a project to rebuild dunes along Lido Beach, the two combining to add resilience to the shoreline while providing habitat for seabirds and other coastal wildlife. 

Congressman Greg Steube, whom Patel credited for navigating some choppy regulatory waters, recalled the state of Lido Beach prior to the renourishment.

“I can remember surfing out here a couple of years ago, and the beach ended about where we're standing, so to see this much beach is a real blessing,” Steube said “I’m just honored to play a small part of it.”

In addition to the wider beach, Patel said the project carries the dual benefit of navigational improvements at New Pass, which separates Lido and Longboat keys.

“New pass was very shallow for boaters,” he said, adding that running aground was a frequent issue. “That has helped the city of Sarasota and Sarasota Police Department as well as town of Longboat Key.”

The coastal protection project was executed in partnership with the Army Corps of Engineers as part of a 50-year agreement for renourishment of Lido Beach at approximately five-year intervals.