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'Thousand Mermaid' artificial reef project ready for deployment; CRA hears timeline, sites and community programming
Summary
Shelby Thomas of Ocean Rescue Alliance presented a nearshore artificial-reef project of 48 modules (12 artistic, 36 habitat) distributed across four nearshore sites; staff said modules are built and deployment windows run March–May with coral outplanting planned for July pending permits.
Shelby Thomas of Ocean Rescue Alliance International briefed the CRA on the City of Hollywood's nearshore artificial-reef project (the "Thousand Mermaid" program), including structure counts, deployment logistics, partner roles and a timeline for coral outplanting.
Thomas said all 48 reef modules ' 12 artistic modules and 36 habitat modules ' are built and staged at the reef-builder's facility near Lake Worth and that logistics for barge and trucking are secured. "All of the reefs are constructed and ready to go for deployment," Thomas told the CRA. Deployment of the four sites will require two days of near-perfect sea conditions because the project is nearshore and must be staged from a barge; Thomas identified a March deployment window (March 28'March 29) pending regulatory advisory and tug/barge availability, with backup windows in April and a latest deployment target in May if weather or logistics require delay.
Thomas described site distribution: Site 1 (North Beach Park) 11 modules; Site 2 11 modules; Site 3 12 modules; Site 4 14 modules, for a total of 48. She explained that artistic modules include mermaid and guardian sculptures and that each reef module is designed with coral locks to allow rapid outplanting of native, non-endangered corals.
The group discussed priorities: Board Member Calari asked whether the "100-year" commemorative module could be deployed first; Thomas said the schedule can be adjusted so south sites (Sites 3 and 4) could go first if the board prefers. Thomas said coral outplanting will follow deployment and is currently targeted for July to allow the modules to acclimate and because federal and state permitting requires a specific permitting window; she described collaborations with academic partners and a lab to grow corals for outplanting and with a camera provider for monitoring.
Thomas also described donated art modules that could be added at no cost and noted plans for community programming ' beach cleanups, "Live Blue" wellness events, snorkeling and snorkel education, and potential launch-week public events. She said maintenance and one year of camera monitoring is included and that the project team is pursuing additional grants for scaled restoration work.
Public comment: Elena Hershey of the Hollywood Beach Business Association expressed support and said HBBA would dedicate one statue in memory of her late husband.
The CRA did not take a formal vote; staff and the proponent said they will finalize deployment scheduling, buoy permit details and a coral outplanting schedule once regulatory approvals and barge windows are confirmed.
