St. Lucie County staff brief commissioners on wet‑season readiness, NPDES obligations and culvert assistance

St. Lucie County public works officials told the Board of County Commissioners on May 20 that the county is preparing for the upcoming wet season and is carrying out obligations under its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) municipal separate storm sewer system (MS4) permit.

The briefing reviewed how county crews and contractors inspect and maintain critical drainage infrastructure, deploy two large emergency pumps, coordinate with local water management districts and implement homeowner programs such as the culvert assistance program. Commissioners later approved the assessment resolution that enables a special assessment to pay for culvert improvements.

The presentation matters because St. Lucie County averages about 54 inches of rain a year and county engineers say short, intense storms can overwhelm drainage systems. The NPDES/MS4 permit imposes monitoring, education, construction‑site inspection and other duties the county must show it is performing to state regulators.

Patrick Diane, St. Lucie County public works director, told the board that the wet season and hurricane season preparations include frequent inspections of "critical infrastructure" such as large culverts and bridges and coordination with canal districts and the South Florida Water Management District. "This is something that we're obligated to do," Diane said, describing the required annual update to the board.

Nick Linehan, the county's stormwater program coordinator, summarized the NPDES/MS4 permit structure and compliance work. He said the county's permit is on a five‑year cycle and the county is in the second year of the current term. Linehan listed the program's six elements and described how the county meets them through outreach, volunteer programs, construction inspections and municipal operations. He noted that "any land development project in Saint Lucie County must get a permit from South Florida Water Management" and that county staff coordinate preconstruction meetings and periodic site inspections.

Linehan and Diane gave several operational details and 2024 metrics: the county recorded 42 illicit‑discharge inspections and resolutions in 2024; staff and partner engineers completed more than 900 land‑development site inspections in 2024; and 67 field employees received training. Linehan said the county has made an online illicit‑discharge training class available to all employees through the human resources office.

County staff described homeowner programs that reduce localized flooding: a culvert assistance program that spreads driveway culvert replacement costs over 10 years on the tax roll and a swale maintenance program that pairs county cleanups with homeowner participation. Diane said the culvert assistance program ramped up to roughly 74 enrollees in 2023 when the county performed substantial work in the Indian River Estates neighborhood; county permitting for driveway work runs about 300–400 permits annually.

At the public hearing that followed, Barbara Gettler, the county's MSBU coordinator, asked the board to adopt the assessment resolution required by county ordinance to fund culvert replacements through a special assessment. The board approved Resolution No. 2025-116, authorizing imposition and collection of the special assessments for stormwater culvert improvements.

Discussion points commissioners pressed staff to keep in mind included coordination with homeowners before heavy vegetation clearing, the need for repeated inspections during storms, and the role of adjacent canal districts. Staff emphasized coordination with Fort Pierce Farms, North St. Lucie and the South Florida Water Management District and noted two large pumps are staged at Lakewood Park and at Midway/US‑1 (Palm Gardens area) to address large‑area flooding.

The county recommended several homeowner actions to reduce runoff and nutrient loading, including following the county's wet‑season fertilizer restrictions (June–September), using UF/IFAS guidance for soil testing and leaving grass clippings out of drains. Diane and Linehan pointed residents to the county website and the FEMA Flood Map Service Center for flood‑zone information.

What commissioners decided: the board accepted the informational briefing and approved the culvert‑assessment resolution that authorizes funding the culvert improvements through a non ad valorem assessment per county ordinance. Staff will carry the program forward under existing budget authority and will continue the public outreach and training described in the NPDES update.

Ending note: staff said the county will continue routine and heightened inspections through the wet season and will coordinate with partner agencies to deploy pumps and clear critical outfalls as storms approach.