Event set for 1 p.m. at Lido Beach Pavilion
Members of the community are invited “to attend a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, May 26, at the Lido Beach Pavilion” to celebrate the completion of the three-month-long beach renourishment project on that barrier island, city staff has announced.
The pavilion stands at 400 Benjamin Franklin Drive.
The Lido Beach initiative “conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in partnership with the City of Sarasota and fully paid for by $12 million in federal funding, restored 1.2 miles of eroded shoreline along Lido Key,” a news release explains. The approximately 300,000 cubic yards of sand used during the project was dredged from New Pass, an undertaking that the USACE also managed, though Sarasota County Government sponsored the initiative, the release notes.
“Lido Beach remained open to the public throughout the duration of the renourishment project, which was scheduled to accommodate sea turtle and shorebird nesting seasons,” the release explains.
“Prior to the ribbon cutting, attendees will hear remarks on the project’s success and the local impact of a healthy, renourished Lido Beach,” the release notes. The scheduled speakers are Mayor Debbie Trice, interim City Manager Jennifer Jorgensen, a Lido Key neighborhood representative, and Maj. Cory Bell, the USACE’s deputy commander for South Florida, the release says.
An additional project, planned “to further enhance the resiliency of the public beach and critical local infrastructure,” will begin in the fall, the release continues. That will entail the “construction of vegetated dunes and improved walkovers along the beachfront. Vegetated dunes provide a higher level of protection than standard sand dunes by utilizing root systems to reduce erosion and trapping wind-blown sand and sediment,” the release explains.
For more information, individuals may visit engage.sarasotafl.gov/lido-beach-renourishment, the release says.