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Turnbull Creek Preservation Board votes to seek county funding for post-dredge maintenance
Summary
The Turnbull Creek Preservation Board voted to ask the New Smyrna Beach city commission to request Volusia County direct mosquito-control (special taxing district) funds toward maintaining openings and drainage on Turnbull Creek as dredging approaches. The board discussed funding options, jurisdictional limits and wildlife concerns.
The Turnbull Creek Preservation Board voted to ask the city commission to request that Volusia County direct mosquito-control (special taxing district) or other county funds to help maintain openings and drainage on Turnbull Creek, members said at a board meeting.
Board members and residents described an imminent cleanup and dredging project. "We will be starting the cleanup project in the inter in the, Turnbull Canal very soon. I know that it's, like, 2 weeks from now, roughly," the board member who presented the briefing said, describing sediment removal and follow-up maintenance needs. The presenter said additional maintenance planning is crucial after the dredge.
Why it matters: board members said removing sediment alone will not restore flow if persistent choke points remain at bridges, pilings or abandoned monitoring equipment. Resident speakers described obstructions at the Turnbull Bay Bridge — including old pilings and an abandoned NOAA monitoring station — that they said are damming flow and would need equipment to remove.
The board discussed multiple funding and coordination pathways. The presenter cited USDA Emergency Water Management Program funding earmarked for emergency water work and said infrastructure grants are announced in November. Members noted St. Johns Water Management District told the presenter it would help only as a last resort or if the district owned the waterway, and that many critical openings sit on county or state roads, requiring county or state action.
Board members also discussed Edgewater’s recent infrastructure award as an example. The presenter said Edgewater obtained $15,000,000 through a published infrastructure grant program; staff cautioned that many infrastructure grants carry matching requirements and that the city already has a slate of stormwater projects in its pipeline.
Motion and next step: Resident (speaker 5) moved that the board draft a letter asking the city commission to request the county direct funds to maintain drainage impediments and openings on Turnbull Creek. The motion was seconded by Member Robich (speaker 3) and was approved by members present. The chair and staff said they will draft the letter to bring to the city commission for consideration.
Staff coordination and wildlife concerns: Members asked staff to coordinate with Kyle Fegley and a new stormwater staff member introduced during the meeting. Presenters and residents raised wildlife concerns that could affect scheduling and permitting: the presenter reported that "there were 7 of them there the day that Brian Zielinski went in," referring to manatees observed in a reach of the creek, and said that endangered-species protections could shape sequencing with agencies such as U.S. Fish and Wildlife.
The board directed staff to draft the letter and to follow up with county and state partners on jurisdictional and grant-match questions; staff said they would take the board’s recommendation to the city manager and pursue next steps with the city commission.
