Hallandale Beach outlines multi‑part plan and near-term funds for Shaves Lake cleanup and park

City staff told commissioners on May 6 that a complex, multi‑phase effort is underway to remediate contaminants and convert Shaves Lake into a park while protecting stormwater function for Hallandale Beach. Finance Director Geo Nasty said the program comprises four concurrent tracks: (1) lake remediation and park design, (2) lime dredging, (3) the I‑95 stormwater pump‑station rehabilitation in partnership with FDOT and Pembroke Park, and (4) a DPW yard stormwater outfall that will discharge into the lake.

Nasty said the city has layered funding in preliminary plans, including a $2.6 million allocation the administration will seek in a budget amendment for early toxicological risk assessment and uplift work, a hoped‑for $6 million interlocal agreement (ILA) contribution from the Community Redevelopment Agency for hardscape and park construction in FY27, and $3.8 million already received from PFAS settlement proceeds that the city would apply to dredging planning and work. He described headline appropriations of about $24.6 million across the four projects but emphasized that many figures remain planning‑level estimates and that final costs will be refined after design and testing.

Staff outlined the dredging scope as roughly 1.5 acres of accumulated lime sludge with localized depths of 35–40 feet and even up to two feet of lime above the surface in some places. PFAS sampling and sediment testing underway will determine handling, disposal and final dredging costs; Nasty said the results are the single most consequential variable for near‑term budgeting and that dredging design and permitting work are planned May–August with construction targeted for January–July 2027 if permitting and testing allow.

Commissioners pressed staff on sources and toxicity. Environmental staff and the water department said the lime is a byproduct of the city’s past lime softening process and can contain residual contaminants that must be characterized with toxicity leachate testing (TCLP) and other waste‑characterization work. Staff said some arsenic and other soil exceedances were found in upland samples and that upland source removal will focus on areas above state groundwater and soil cleanup target levels.

Nasty told the commission the lake project must be carefully sequenced: upland source removal and toxicological risk assessment must precede certain park design elements, and FDEP/FDP comments will guide whether the lake can be used for boating, fishing or only passive access. He also said a brownfield designation is being pursued to unlock tax credits and reimbursements that can offset costs.

Mayor Cooper and Commissioners raised concerns about ongoing inputs to the lake from FDOT outfalls and the I‑95 drainage, and staff said interagency agreements and a tri‑party arrangement with FDOT and Pembroke Park will be necessary to clarify operations, maintenance and responsibilities. Nasty said the city expects some FDOT and Pembroke Park contributions to the pump station rehab and that a stormwater rate study is modeling reimbursement assumptions.

Nasty and staff framed the work as addressing a legacy brownfield and preserving 32 acres of open space identified in the parks master plan, while several commissioners urged caution about committing large capital sums and suggested evaluating lower‑cost, distributed park investments if future testing limits active water uses.

The presentation was given as part of a workshop; staff said a budget amendment related to these projects would appear on the May 6 agenda and that further commission touchpoints and workshops will follow.