Floridatown Park, located on Escambia Bay in Pace, provides public boating access facilities and recreational park amenities. The shoreline has experienced extensive erosion from surge and extreme weather events. As an alternative to armoring the shoreline with traditional methods, a living shoreline is an environmentally friendly way of reducing shoreline erosion, improving water quality and providing habitats for fish and wildlife.
Santa Rosa County received a $120,000 Resilient Coastlines Program grant to assess and determine the most suitable type of nature-based living shoreline for the location. Assessment and planning activities will be undertaken by Jacobs, a consulting firm with Coastal Green Infrastructure expertise.
Representatives from the Santa Rosa County Environmental Program, UF/IFAS Florida Sea Grant Extension Office, The Nature Conservancy and Jacobs will be available at a public meeting Tues., Oct 29 at 5:30 p.m. at the Pace Community Center, 5976 Chumuckla Hwy. in Pace, to discuss the proposed project and solicit feedback from the public.
Meeting information will also include an overview of the different types of living shorelines and how living shorelines are working in and around the Pensacola Bay area. For more information, contact Shelley Alexander, environmental programs coordinator, 850-981-2018.