Palmetto city leaders want to do something that's never been done before in Florida.
City commissioners voted in favor of adding a new type of seawall at Riverside Park. It’s called a living seawall shoreline.
“We’ll be the first in Florida and, who knows, in the nation to have this type of hybrid,” said Jeff Burton, Director of the Palmetto Community Redevelopment Agency. “It’s something that was planned and we want to make sure it’s something people would want to come out and see.”
The structure would consist of both natural and man-made materials.
It would not only protect the shoreline from rising sea levels and wave action, but would also improve marine habitat.
“It will be a habitat for all kinds of critters in the water,” said Burton. "It would be a place for fish to get in and out of, and a place for vegetation.”
City leaders came up with the idea after learning the current seawall is in bad shape. Built in the 1920s, it’s old and worn-down.
“We realized we had a serious problem so we declared it an emergency repair,” Palmetto Mayor Shirley Groover Bryant said.
The emergency repair is leading to a new and improved look.
Bryant said they were already planning major improvements at the park and now this will be an added benefit. She said they’re working with Reef Renovations in Sarasota to come up with the living wall/shoreline combo.
Bryant thinks the project will serve as a major attraction to the area.
“I think people will be coming to see it from different places,” said Bryant. “It’s not just something underwater. It will have a noticeable improvement to the viewing as well.”
The seawall project is expected to cost $500,000. It will be funded through grants from the Southwest Florida Water Management District, FDOT, and the Community Redevelopment Agency.
Once the seawall is fixed, work will begin on the Riverside Park project.