BY MARK J. CRAWFORD
A resident and member of the Bradford Soil and Water Conservation District continues to urge the county commission and its engineer to change its plan to place a boat ramp at Cypress Run.
Paul Still has approached the commission several times to say the plan to dredge and construct a new boat ramp is unlikely to be permitted. Each time he has proposed a simpler alternative.
On March 5, Still told commissioners that the Florida Department of Environmental Protection had returned a permit application seeking additional information and detailed answers about the project.
Rather than push forward, Still once again asked the commission to change course and consult an engineer other than DRMP.
According to Still’s calculation, less than $5,000 remains to pay the engineer to provide the significant amount of information needed for DEP to review the permit.
In addition, Still said the county needs to request more time from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission since the deadline for completion is at the end of June.
“I think it’s very important that the county determine whether they’re going to proceed with DRMP or whether they need to go out and find another firm to complete this project. It would be a real shame to lose the opportunity to put in a boat ramp there at Cypress Run,” Still said.
Still continues to suggest an alternative he says would not require a dredging permit. Getting that “404 permit” was further complicated by a recent district court ruling, which found that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency acted illegally when turned Clean Water Act permitting over to the state. The state is challenging that ruling, but Still said the chance of getting the permit needed to carry out DRMP’s plan is in “significant limbo,” at least for the near future.
Rather than dredge a new location, Still has advocated removing vegetation from an existing canal. This maintenance dredging will not require a permit, he said. The county could then build a simple boat ramp with pervious parking that won’t require a retention pond.
“You’d have a really nice, easily fundable project. But if you continue to seek this high-end project that DRMP has put in place, I think you’re going to essentially walk away with nothing,” Still said.
In other business:
—County Manager Scott Kornegay addressed the expiration of engineering services contracts and received the board’s approval to advertise a request for qualifications from engineering firms. In addition to DRMP, the county also has services contracts with CHW Professional Consultants and Jones Edmunds.
