The 5.5-mile, $17.3 million Anna Maria Island beach renourishment project is underway as of last week, beginning at 78th Street North in Holmes Beach and traveling south to the end of the Island at Longboat Pass at the rate of about 300 feet per day.
Portions of the beach will be closed during construction, preventing beachgoers from accessing that area of the shore, however, a sand walkway will be maintained landward of the project for north/south pedestrian access.
The sand is dredged from an offshore borrow area about 2,000 feet offshore of the north end of the Island, near Passage Key, then pumped through a pipeline to the beach as a water/sand slurry. The submerged pipeline connects to a shore pipeline that runs laterally along the beach. The sand slurry is discharged from the pipeline and bulldozers push the sand into the water, making the beach larger, and onto the existing beach, making it higher.
Work will continue 24 hours a day barring bad weather.
The sand restores beaches eroded by storms and provides protection from future storms for upland buildings and roads.
The project should be completed by October or November, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
Residents and business owners who have questions about the project may reach David Ruderman in the USACE Corporate Communication Office by email at david.j.ruderman@usace.army.mil or by calling 904-232-1623.
