SPECIAL STILLWRIGHT POINT COMMISSION WORKSHOP: BOCC AGREES TO CONSIDER ROAD ADAPTATION ALTERNATIVES FOR STILLWRIGHT POINT

Residents and homeowners meet with the commissioners after the meeting concluded on Tuesday at the Nelson Government Center in Key Largo.

KEY LARGO, FL – The Monroe County Board of County Commissioners hosted a special resilience and roads adaptation workshop in Key Largo on Tuesday. The meeting focused on alternatives for road adaptation projects for Stillwright Point, a neighborhood in Key Largo that consistently experiences king tide flooding for several weeks out of the year.

Monroe County Chief Resilience Officer Rhonda Haag and Roads and Engineering Director Judy Clarke, along with the project consultants, updated the commissioners and public on the status of the County Roadway Vulnerability Study and Implementation Plan. The presentation included an update on the Twin Lakes road adaptation project in Key Largo. The solicitation for the construction of the Twin Lakes road adaptation project is anticipated to be released within two weeks. Grant funds are available for the construction estimate amount. Stillwright Point’s road adaptation project is funded for the design only and is currently underway. Construction estimated costs have risen from $20 million to $40 million with no changes to the project scope due to rising construction costs.

“We are facing a really tough road ahead of us when it comes to funding resilience projects,” said Haag. “There are heavy increases in construction costs, and now there is also much more competition from other areas in Florida applying for the same grant funding.”

Funding challenges include increased project costs and limited state and federal grant opportunities. Local funding options include county revenue, neighborhood assessments, and a potential additional penny sales tax to fund resilience projects.

Following the presentation and public comment, the commissioners discussed five alternative ideas for Stillwright Point, ranging from the $41 million long-term road elevation project using 2045 sea-level rise projections with pumped drainage to the $0 “no adaptation project ” approach.

The commissioners ultimately asked staff to evaluate and design the option to add asphalt from 1 to 6 inches to alleviate some of the high tide flooding issues, with an approximate price tag of $2.5 million. Staff will bring forward a task order to move forward with the design work at the January 31 regularly scheduled BOCC meeting.

To view the presentation, visit www.monroecounty-fl.gov/DocumentCenter/View/34834/Stillwright-Point-BOCC-121223-Presentation.