The tent protecting against a stifling sun was oriented in such a way that as speakers extolled the ceremonial groundbreaking of the county’s first-ever beach-renourishment project this morning, it wasn’t the beach that was behind them, but a gift shop, a tattoo parlor and a bar. It was just as well: the $27 million beach project isn’t intended to rebuild the beach for its own sake alone, but to protect the homes, roads and small businesses behind it, bars and tattoo parlors among them.
The beach, as critically eroded as ever, was a small distance to the right of the audience, past the greens of Flagler Beach’s Veterans Park, down that dip of dunes recent storms have all but ripped off. The vanishing dunes required the dumping of an emergency rock berm there last year, to keep the ocean from carving into State Road A1A next, as it has on two occasions since 2016 south of the pier.
That same sun pounding the throng of federal state and county officials under the tent, the way it broils man-made greenhouse gases trapped in the atmosphere, has been warming the ocean, melting glaciers, causing the sea to rise and powering that erosion behind intensifying storms. But in keeping with state policy, which denies climate change to the point of banning the terminology, not one of the officials who spoke today made a single reference to climate change, though they dropped the more vacuous word “resiliency” a few times.
U.S. Rep Mike Waltz, whose votes on environmental policy earned him a rating of zero from the League of Conservation Voters in 2023, and a lifetime rating of 15 percent, understandably devoted a third of his speech to boasting about his recent parachute jump over Normandy and the lipstick all over the cheek of veterans there: he couldn’t very well talk about climate policy.
The two people who had the most to do with shepherding the 3.4-mile beach renourishment project to its start date sometime in the next few weeks weren’t even invited to speak: Jason Harrah, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ project manager who’s been involved in it for 14 years, and County Attorney Al Hadeed, who had his own Omaha Beach experience for three years as he secured some 140 easements from private property owners, some of them as obstinate as the rock at Pointe du Hoc, to enable the Corps to do its work. Waltz gave Hadeed a challenge coin for his toils.
“I’m very humbled by the challenge coin the congressman gave me,” Hadeed said afterward. “It should have gone to the whole community.”
There was plenty of mutual applause, everyone thanking everyone for their cooperation, with many references to the “awesome amounts of collaboration to bring us to this point,” in the words of Flagler Beach Commission Chair Scott Spradley. He recalled his own role in getting the final necessary easement signed.
Kevin Guthrie, the former local emergency management director who now holds the top spot in Gov. DeSantis’s emergency management division, was in Flagler County as attempts to ramp up this phase of the renourishment took place 11 years ago. “It’s nice to see it coming to fruition now 10-11 years later,” he said. “This continues to be an investment by this governor and the Senate and the House leadership on investing in the environment for not just Flagler County, but the state of Florida.”
Guthrie was on his way to South Florida right after this morning’s groundbreaking, to take stock of the latest round of flooding there. In a brief interview after the speeches, he said he did not see Florida’s struggles against the elements as a losing battle. Rather, he said, areas that have been flooding were built with 1950s and 60s and 70s infrastructure that now was catching up to more current standards. “At some point in time, cities and counties and communities are going to have to invest in that stormwater infrastructure,” Guthrie said. “How do we do that? That’s not a losing battle. We’ve got to be able to do that at the state, federal and city level.”
Flagler County has not been a good example: Palm Coast earlier this year rejected a utility plan to raise water fees in part to build more infrastructure. The county just took a beating over its belated beach-management plan and preliminary feelers about imposing a new tax to raise money for beach protection. So despite the gathering of officials from every level of government, there was an element of unearned parochialism in today’s groundbreaking: Flagler County extending its lucky streak of spending other people’s money.
While the state has consistently opposed addressing climate change at its source–both DeSantis and Rep. Paul Renner, the Speaker of the House and Flagler County’s representative, have been hostile to any attempt to shift from fossil fuels to renewables–it has promiscuous amounts of money on containing the consequences of climate change, including close to $100 million in Flagler County alone on dune-rebuilding and road-rebuilding, with the federal government throwing in a small share of that: to date, Flagler County has not had to spend a dime of local general funds on beach protection. It’s all been Department of Transportation, Division of Environmental Protection and other sources.
The Transportation Department has spent the lion’s share of the money–building a pair of secant seawalls (the second is under construction at the south end of Flagler Beach–rebuilding rock revetments, and rebuilding State Road A1A itself more than once, with another revamp soon. Since Hurricane Matthew in 2016, A1A has had to be closed several times south of the pier, and a couple of times north of it. The north-side secant wall put an end to the closures.
John Tyler, who leads the nine-county District 5 of the Transportation Department, has become a familiar face locally as he’s overseen his department’s projects and the public engagement that preceded them. It’s resulted in the ongoing fusion of approaches between DOT, the Army Corps and Flagler County–that mixture of beach rebuilding and wall-building that preserves the shoreline’s character and attraction while building the more radically altering walls in select places, as protection for infrastructure.
Tyler is an engineer. The lenses on his glasses bear no hint of rosiness–not even today, a day otherwise devoted to back-patting and self-congratulation. Like Harrah–the Army Corps project manager–Tyler said the project is one step among ongoing steps, not a final destination. It was as close as anyone came to acknowledging the inevitable.
“It’s going to be a continuing work in progress,” Tyler said. “You can’t just build something and expect Mother Nature to be held at bay for decades. But these projects together are going to improve the resiliency of A1A. We’re still going to have things to do, before storms and after storms. But hopefully it’ll be less than we’ll have to do. And the roadways will be open for a longer period of time. Hopefully they won’t close at all. But we’re going to have to continue to have our presence here in Flagler County for the foreseeable future. This is a tremendous asset that we have, unlike any other in the state, with A1A running along the beach, along the Atlantic Ocean. We can’t just build a wall and forget it. We’re going to have to maintain it, we’re going to have to continue to have a presence in the community.”
One of the selling points of secant walls is that they are buried under massive dunes, and when the dunes wash out, they are buried again, lessening their unaesthetic impact–they’re ugly, spectral things, laid bare–and lessening the ecological impact, too: sea walls kill beaches unless the beach in front of them is constantly renourished.
Even with the new beach about to be rebuilt, don’t expect it to “take” right away: it could very well be washed away. “This is one of our newest beach programs,” Harrah said. “Some of the bigger projects that have a really, really wide beach like Duval County, Miami, St. Johns, they’ve been around since the 1970s and 80s. We’re going to build a really large, resilient beach. However, it’s eroded so much that it’s going to take time to build it to a satisfactory template.”
So the project ahead may take four months. But while it is scheduled to be “renourished” again in 11 years–with Flagler County billed for half that cost–it is unlikely to last nearly that long before it’ll need more sand.
After the speeches, which were blessedly cut shower when County Administrator Heidi Petito decided not to extend the broiling with remarks of her own, everyone troupe to the beach for what Commission Chair Andy Dance, who had emceed the proceedings, described as “this monumental groundbreaking.”
Typically at such things an array of gold-speckled shovels is prepared along a bank of sand for the ceremonial moment, with the contractor’s equipment as background. Curiously, Weeks Marine, the contractor on the job, was nowhere in sight: it’s still working a job on Ponte Vedra’s shore.
Faith al-Khatib, the former county engineer who had so much to do with the success of this and other beach-protection project, was also not here. She had not been invited, not after the county pushed her out under odd circumstances last year, but Commissioner Dave Sullivan reserved a few words of praise for her: Referring to the $100 million the county drew down since Matthew, he said al-Khatib “had an awful lot to do with that over the years, and we do miss her. I just didn’t want to let it go.”
The officials did their thing with their shovels as scattered beachgoers looked on, bemused, uncomprehending: what kind of groundbreaking was it that drew men and women in formalwear to turn sand over on a beach? The absurdity of it may have been lost on most, especially those turning over the sand, but not on all.
Nephew Of Uncle Sam says
“U.S. Rep Mike Waltz, whose votes on environmental policy earned him a rating of zero from the League of Conservation Voters in 2023, and a lifetime rating of 15 percent, understandably devoted a third of his speech to boasting about his recent parachute jump over Normandy and the lipstick all over the cheek of veterans there: he couldn’t very well talk about climate policy. ”
Remember that this Election amongst his other votes, he has basically done nothing for all of his Constituents since being elected. Look up his dismal Voting Record since he went to Congress and you’ll ask yourself “what the heck is he doing in Washington?”, seems to be more preoccupied appearing on Fox and making appearances in New York for a 34 Time Convicted Felon. Might want to try something different this time and Vote for James Stockton instead.
Steve Robinson says
So, in DeSantistan a state engineer has to refer to “Mother Nature,” not “climate change.” I hope Mr. Tyler was at least a little embarrassed by the dumbing down.
endangered species says
lol may need more sand next week. Good luck, its almost as if there’s some sort of global trend thats causing events all around the globe.
maybe ron will decide floriduh should go back to leaded fuel, why not it will increase profits for exxon and thats the most important thing.
Steve Robinson says
And I assume any discussion of abortion and contraception will undoubtedly include many references to The Stork.
Chris Conklin says
why are people so negative when it’s not costing them a penny but will provide the next generation of parents and young kids a great place to spend the day and protect the road and homes. if you don’t like it stay the hell home. nobody in flagler beach wants you here anyway.
Mike says
Climate change is fake of course, but clear cutting all the woodlands for housing and strip malls is the real culprit of rising temperatures. Just think 1000 acres of wash Greenland absorbs all the heat and creates tons of shade compared to 1000 acres of rooftop and Asphalt that’s like an incinerator doesn’t take a scientist to figure that out
Callmeishmael says
Shame on me for laughing at this!
bill says
This climat change you speak of, is it the same as global warming?
if so, Why /when the name change?
Joey says
What alternative reality do you live in ? It is our taxpayer dollars that are being thrown away on something that will be gone by the end of the year. When is the circus act running the Army Corp of Engineers going to realize that a seawall is the only solution ?
Hammock Huck says
Those “golden” shovels might as well be in a pile of cash, because with the first major storm, all that replenished sand will be washed out to sea. Shame on Flagler County…AGAIN.
Jane Gentile Youd says
Thank you Dave Sullivan for giving Faith Alkatahib the credit she deserves. We would NOT have these funds if it were not for here. Terrible mistake the county made by ‘throwing her out’. She saved Hadeed’s home is how I see it and all his hard work was to save his own home first and foremost but never mentioned – he had to move into a trailer years ago while his home on the each was being rebuilt. He made sure this time to prevent a deja vue. Sorry Faith is not here anymore. She was the best
Denali says
What is your point? DeSantis blazed the ‘do-nothing’ trail for Waltz and it got him into the governor’s chair and possibly further. If Waltz had his eyes on more lofty goals he has selected the correct path.
Nephew Of Uncle Sam says
Visit Coursera and take a free weather class for all your answers about the changing climate and what causes it.
dave says
Taxpayers $$ are thrown away regardless. ex: people that do not live in “town” like the barrier island with a Palm Coast address pay for crap in Downtown Palm Coast and visa versa. . That’s not “fair” either.. Hell nothing is fair when it comes to city and county govt. We all are going to pay something to somebody and there isn’t a darn thing we can do about it but complain about it. We all will pay for sand along the coast. I’m just waiting till the project is completed and along comes a Matthew like Hurricane and removes all the sand they pounded onto the ground.
Here today, gone tomorrow.
The dude says
Climate change is fake. Yet there are rising temperatures?
c says
“The Stork” ?
Nonsense – everyone knows human reproduction takes place in a cabbage patch.
Pogo says
@Algonquin Round Table Bait Shop & Limbs With Steel Pins Weather Alert
Oh, dawling — marvelous (Sponsored by Frozen Food Sellers of the Solar System)
https://www.nhc.noaa.gov/gtwo.php?basin=atlc&fdays=7
“If you have any young friends who aspire to become writers, the second greatest favor you can do them is to present them with copies of The Elements of Style. The first greatest, of course, is to shoot them now, while they’re happy.”
— Dorothy Parker
Don miller says
We have paved over all the coastal towns wetlands and natural drainage recycle thru the aquifer is ruined as the rain runoff pours into the sea raising it anc the cities flood. Anyone up for challenging that point? Fix that first, it is easier than fixing the climate
Diane J. Cline says
I realize that as a mother I’m clearly coming from a place of being absolutely prejudiced, but to not include my daughter Carla Cline in this very officious occasion I am offended. I absolutely recognize the tremendous amount of work performed by numerous officials to make the dune restoration a reality but let’s put things into perspective…it was y’all’s job and you received pay. And, after all of it had stalled miserably, my daughter stepped in, no compensation, and was able to raise enough funds to get the job back on track. Shame on those of you that know of her very valuable participation and did not insist that she be given credit. She should have been given a shovel.
Laurel says
c: Be careful what you say! DeSantis and his minions may require us all to farm cabbage without our consent.
Laurel says
Joey: There cannot be a seawall. If there is a seawall, there will be no beach.
Laurel says
Dear Mr. Guthrie: I was born and raised in South Florida, and for you to talk about 1960’s and 1970’s infrastructure, and not credit climate change, is sticking your head in the beach sand. Broward and Dade Counties never had such flooding as it does now. I think it was somewhere around 1973 that we had a monumental downpour, that flooded one street off Commercial Boulevard. We had the infrastructure, and that area of the state is far more informed on the subject than this area. This part of the state has ignored so much, and now, starts acting as if climate change still isn’t a factor, but just a new beach problem.
Beach “re-nourishment” has worked for South Florida, but I seriously doubt it will work here. South Florida does have its wave action moments, but not like here. There is a reason why surfing is better in Cocoa Beach and north. This part of the state has no ocean buffers…none. Several times a week, Alexa informs me that there is a rip current warning for the next 24+ hours. I’ve never seen so many rip current warnings as there is here. These rip currents scallop out the beach, and will continue to do so unless y’all do something to slow wave action.
Stop denying what is happening to our planet. I’m certain y’all didn’t think it would happen quite so soon, but here it is. Start thinking beyond beach re-nourishment, which can be a complimenting factor, and start looking off shore.
Stephen says
Why waste our money and put up a wall? Why not just move St Rd A1A and give Flagler Beach a bigger, better beach? It will save lots of dollars.