A project to address flooding from king tides and heavy rains in the Key Largo Stillwright Point community won’t move to the construction phase.
With a $40-million-plus price tag, county officials were considering recommendations from engineers to raise roads 2.65 feet and build a pump station to move water off the driving surface in the bayside subdivision. Residents in the neighborhood, however, weren’t in full support of giving away 10 feet of their properties via easements to accommodate water retention and treatment.
At a special June 17 meeting in Key Largo, county commissioners directed staff to halt the project, which secured $20 million in federal funds and was in line to receive an additional $21 million through the Resilient Florida grant program. Commissioners made the decision after they heard an updated presentation from the engineering firm HDR Inc. on five alternatives previously outlined at past meetings.
There was an additional alternative, however, to raise the road to 2030 flood projections, 1.19 feet, and install a pump station. The alternative only needed 5-foot easements from residents. The price tag for the project was $38 million. There was concern, however, that going with the new alternative could jeopardize funding the county received for the previously-recommended project already designed by HDR.
Commissioners did agree to provide routine road maintenance and potential future repaving.
90-day-plus tidal flooding sparked concern
King tides in fall 2019 covered roads and streets for 94 consecutive days inside the Stillwright Point community, located at MM 105, bayside, in Key Largo. While it wasn’t the first time residents experienced flooded roads due to king tides, the period in which the saltwater stayed was alarming to many in the community.
“It really impacted life here,” resident Bill Marlow told Keys Weekly in a 2019 interview.
Shortly after the record flooding, county commissioners expedited an analysis and modeling project to determine some possible solutions, as well as cost and any related policy decisions.
By June 2020, a presentation by Emilio Corrales, project manager with HDR Inc., and other officials dug into possible solutions to mitigate the flooding.
Tidal flooding returned to Stillwright Point in the fall of 2020. The event lasted about 70 days. As the flooding unfolded, county crews installed 24-inch-high flood barriers in an attempt to mitigate the rising waters and give relief to residents. The barriers, which provide a dam between the road and tidal waters of Florida Bay, didn’t prove successful.
As the years progressed, the county continued to contract with HDR Inc. on a roads vulnerability analysis for county-maintained roads, including those in Stillwright Point. During a December 2023 workshop, commissioners listened to residents’ wishes to add several inches of asphalt to their roads and streets. Costs were roughly $2.5 million at the time — no drainage was proposed under the alternative. In January 2024, commissioners approved design for a roadways paving project for Stillwright Point.
The approval came at a time when a $41 million project was in the design phase to raise roads and streets and install a pressurized stormwater system to move water from heavy rain events and king tides. With half the dollars secured through the federal government, the project was ranked No. 7 statewide as eligible to receive funding through Resilient Florida.
County explores options to relax state’s strict regulations
Last month, commissioners tasked staff to explore possible ways the county could possibly deviate from strict state regulations — specifically related to water quality and stormwater — to help move the project forward amid the 10-foot easement issue. Erin Deady, consultant for the county, laid out a few options the county could examine; they included a permit exemption from the South Florida Water Management District, a variance, a waiver and legislative action. Deady said those routes wouldn’t necessarily be guaranteed since the county would still need to show compliance with state water quality standards and no flooding impacts to adjacent properties.
Any kind of legislative change would require time to hold multiple meetings, as well as garnering the needed public and legislator support. It would also invite scrutiny as it relates to legislative priorities regarding water quality and stormwater regulations.
Deady also noted permits, waivers, variances or legislative changes do not remove the ability for third parties to challenge agency action for water quality impacts or road flooding impacts on a neighboring property.
“Adjacent property owners can sue if you flood them,” Deady told county commissioners, adding that litigation could force the government to comply with local regulations.
Residents express frustration
Stillwright Point resident Kim Sikora said she wished the county explored the new alternative, raising the roads just over a foot while installing a pump station, earlier in the process. She also took issue with the lack of maintenance on the roads and streets since the sewers were installed.
“The roads are sinking. It’s just super frustrating. We’re paying for services yet we won’t have mail, garbage and emergency services,” she said in relation to the fall king tide season.
Emilie Stewart, who also lives in Stillwright Point, said her subdivision is second to Ocean Reef in terms of tax base at $140 million. She expressed issues over the lack of services and benefits received as a community.
“The last time roads were paved was in January 2009 when the sewers were finished,” she said. “Here we come at the end of August, and for the next three months we won’t get mail, sheriff’s patrols or even garbage pickup that we’re paying out of our taxes. I like to call us a donor community.”
Commissioner Holly Raschein asked county staff to reach out to the sheriff’s office, the garbage company and mail service to reiterate the need to “get down to those folks” in Stillwright Point. She also proposed posting signs in the neighborhood to warn people about the dangerous situations that could resonate from flooding.
Handling the needs of flooded neighborhoods
Monroe County Administrator Christine Hurley outlined how Lee County handles the special needs of neighborhoods, where each neighborhood organizes, conducts a polling of potential costs and funds 100% of those improvements through a Municipal Services Benefit Unit. Road elevation and drainage projects in other parts of the Keys have various levels of grant funding available for construction. Property owners, however, will be asked to pay for the difference in project funding and future maintenance costs. At least 50% plus one of the property owners must be in favor, or the project will not proceed.
The commission directed staff to develop a new program where neighborhoods interested in road elevations to combat sea-level rise can follow a process similar to the Lee County model.
