Safety Harbor staff to draft comprehensive plan after residents press for fixes to Bishop and Mullet creeks

The Safety Harbor City Commission directed staff on Jan. 21 to prepare a comprehensive plan and financing options after a series of presentations and extensive public comment about erosion and stormwater damage along Bishop and Mullet creeks.

City engineering staff and private consultants told the commission the creeks have long histories of erosion that were made worse by recent hurricanes and heavy rains. John Sutton, a water-resources engineer with Kimley‑Horn, said a 2023 U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study identified priority problem sites and recommended preliminary engineering but also left data gaps in survey, geotechnical and environmental analysis.

“The Army Corps study highlighted several key problem areas, but it did not include surveys of existing crossings, geotech, or detailed environmental work,” Sutton said. He and his colleagues proposed a three‑phase approach — a preliminary engineering report, full design and permitting, followed by limited construction phase services — and estimated a worst‑case planning+design and construction-assistance fee of about $1.2 million and an overall program timeline of roughly 40 months from notice to proceed for the areas in the Corps study.

Engineering director Michelle…