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Commission backs FIND grant requests for downtown dredging, Jim King Park amenities and boat-ramp design
Summary
The Waterways Commission supported FIND subcommittee recommendations to apply for grants for a $3.355M downtown dredging project (FIND request $1.525M), a phased $2.75M Sisters Creek transient facility (FIND $1.25M for phase 1), and a $275K design request for TK Stokes Boat Ramp bulkhead replacement.
The Jacksonville Waterways Commission voted to support FIND (Florida Inland Navigation District) subcommittee recommendations that the city prepare city-council legislation to apply for multiple FIND grants. Brian Burkett of the Parks Department presented three priority requests the subcommittee reviewed for 2026: a downtown dredging project across seven sites, a phased Sisters Creek transient facility at Jim King Park, and a design project to replace the bulkhead at the TK Stokes Boat Ramp.
Burkett said the total estimated cost for the downtown dredging project is $3,355,000, with a FIND request of $1,525,000 and a City of Jacksonville match of approximately $1.83 million, noting the target depth would be −7.2 feet. He told the commission that sediment from an area near the Dinner Cruise Dock showed contaminants (metals likely associated with historically sunken vessels), which would raise disposal costs if that footprint were dredged and required dewatering and landfill disposal.
For Jim King Park (Sisters Creek transient facilities), Burkett described a two-phase strategy: phase 1 would fund an operational transient bathhouse, showers and a boardwalk pier with an estimated cost of $2.75 million (FIND share $1.25 million), and a later request in 2027 would seek funding for approximately 500 feet of floating docks and gangways.
The TK Stokes Boat Ramp bulkhead replacement is proposed as a new design project with an estimated design cost of $275,000 and a FIND request of $125,000. Burkett said the FIND grant program is capped per county based on available ad valorem funding and that Jacksonville’s consolidated government status reduces intra-county competition for those dollars.
After questions about disposal options, septic infrastructure for new bathhouse facilities, and district alignment, the commission approved a motion to support the FIND subcommittee recommendations so the parks department can prepare legislation for the city council. The motion was adopted by voice vote.
