Flagler County staff outline $120M coastline plan; commissioners ask staff to launch public education campaign

County staff presented a multi‑year coastal erosion and beach management plan to the Board of County Commissioners on March 3, outlining construction and recurring maintenance costs for the county’s 18 miles of coastline and recommending a mix of funding tools that would include tourist development funds (TDC), existing half‑cent sales tax allocations, state and federal grants and an assessment tool for barrier‑island parcels.

Why it matters: Tourism accounts for a large share of Flagler County’s economy — staff cited last year’s tourism impact figures when arguing that protecting beaches preserves jobs, property values and public access. The presentation tied beach renourishment work to economic and infrastructure resilience and described the county’s only clear path out of a recurring emergency posture as adoption of a sustainable local funding strategy.

Key points from the presentation: staff said a comprehensive construction estimate for all reaches of the county coastline is just over $120 million with a local share in the neighborhood of $42.4 million. The presentation summarized Reach 1 (the Army Corps project completed last fall) at roughly $29 million for about 1,700,000 cubic yards of material. Reach 2 was described as about 1,800,000 cubic yards for roughly $35 million and staff said the county is pursuing permit modifications and design work with the goal of starting early this summer. Maintenance planning assumptions used a six‑year nourishment cycle; staff’s planning values implied an aggregated local maintenance need of about $72 million over multiple cycles and an equivalent annual contribution of roughly $12 million per year.

Staff identified existing and prospective revenue sources: about $15 million in grant applications and similar program funding are pending; the board had already allocated $5 million in the fiscal‑year 2025 budget. The staff proposal suggested reallocating some TDC capital funds (Fund 1109) for construction over a multi‑year window, continuing to use the TDC beach fund (Fund 110) for maintenance, and pursuing an additional half‑cent local option sales tax to underwrite periodic nourishment. Staff also described an MSBU (municipal service benefit unit) or MSTU approach limited to unincorporated barrier‑island parcels and the need for interlocal agreements with municipalities to cover incorporated areas. FDOT staff, according to presenters, indicated an approximate $500,000 per year to place sand in front of state seawalls as part of their maintenance budget.

Commissioners’ reaction and next steps: Commissioners and staff discussed implementation mechanics (easements, permitting, beach‑access continuity and the relative cost of dredged vs. truck‑hauled sand). Multiple commissioners stressed the importance of public education about the proposed funding approach, and staff asked for and received board consensus to begin a public outreach campaign presenting options and impacts. The Board did not take a formal vote at the workshop; staff said formal action, including any adoption of a new half‑cent sales tax or MSBU, would require later board votes and interlocal agreements with cities if countywide coverage is desired.

Concerns and tradeoffs raised: Commissioners and members of the public noted distributional fairness (who pays — inland residents, tourists or barrier‑island parcel owners), the cost of seawalls vs. renourishment, and the need to protect existing property owners who have already funded seawalls. A Painters Hill resident told the Board he opposed a new tax and questioned why replenishment would be needed where seawalls exist. Staff responded that seawalls alone do not provide long‑term protection unless there is a functioning beach profile in front of them; staff also explained that dredge sand generally costs substantially less per cubic yard than truck hauled sand.

Ending: Staff said the county will continue engineering and permitting for Reach 2 and further refine cost estimates, pursue pending grants, and work with the TDC and municipalities; commissioners gave staff direction to begin the public education campaign and to return with budget and interlocal proposals for formal consideration.