Okaloosa County BOCC — August 12, 2014 — 5-5 Beaches & Parks — reading text

BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OKALOOSA COUNTY, FLORIDA SERVICE AREA: CULTURE/RECREATION DEPARTMENT/PROGRAM: TOURIST DEVELOPMENT - BEACHES & PARKS PROGRAM DESCRIPTION: Maintenance, restoration, and improvements of beaches and beach facilities; maintenance and improvements of waterfront parks within the taxing district; and support for an artificial reef program and ecotourism opportunities. REVENUE: Beaches and parks maintenance and improvements are funded by the Tourist Development Trust Fund, specifically the 1st cent of the Tourist Development Tax on short term rentals, as well as by a special assessment of certain properties. EXPENDITURES: Expenditures Budget FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 Category Actual $ Actual $ Original $ Approved $ Personal Services 77,363 0 146,419 141,937 Operating Expenses 230,735 312,711 901,866 474,757 Capital Outlay 0 0 1,650,000 2,000,000 Grants & Aids 0 6,395,000 15,000 438,530 Transfer Out 0 1,227,572 804,193 1,677,887 Reserves 0 0 6,852,522 5,382,889 Total 308,098 7,935,283 10,370,000 10,116,000 HISTORICAL STAFFING SUMMARY: Category FY12 FY13 FY14 FY15 Full-time 1 1 2 2 Part-Time 0 0 0 0 Relief 0 0 0 0 Total 1 1 2 2 MAJOR ACCOMPLISHMENTS LAST YEAR:  Began environmental permitting for Veterans Park Baywalk project.  Began Phase II, upland environmental permitting for Veterans Park.  Continued design and permitting of artificial reefs.  Began design work for development of Beach Freeways 4, 5, & 6.  Began permitting process for six, near shore snorkel reef sites.  Secured $1 million in the United States Army Corps of Engineers work plan for maintenance dredging of East Pass.  Awarded a DEP grant for the construction of six public dune walkovers on Okaloosa Island.  Pending award of Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation grants for the construction of artificial reefs.  Submitted a National Fish and Wildlife Foundation grant for Baywalk living shorelines project. PROGRAM GOAL: Protect Okaloosa County and City of Destin beaches through regular cleaning and raking, periodic beach restoration, and sea turtle monitoring. Enhance these assets through improvements in the form of waterfront parks, public access, artificial, reefs and other tourist related projects. Seek long-term beach restoration and Federal funding through the Federal Shore Protection Program. KEY OBJECTIVES: 1. Provide clean, well-maintained, and quality beaches and waterfront parks that offer facilities, amenities, landscaping, and improvements that enhance the environmental experience for visitors. 2. Protect nesting sea turtles. 3. Secure Congressional/US Army Corp of Engineers funding for Feasibility Study phase of the Federal Shore Protection Project. 4. Expand and enhance artificial reef and ecotourism programs. The following projects are planned for FY 2015:  Construct improvements at beach access points 4, 5, and 6.  Construct six dune walkovers between R-2 and R-10 on Okaloosa Island.  Construct multiple artificial reefs to support the fishing and diving industry.  Construct 2 near shore snorkeling reefs.  Begin construction of Baywalk living shorelines project and upland improvements to Veterans Park.  Deploy boat Tenneco as diving reef.  Assist City of Destin in securing long term funding for maintenance dredging of East Pass Federal Navigation Project.  Work with Eglin AFB and neighboring Counties to establish a program to use “materials of opportunity” to construct artificial reefs. PERFORMANCE MEASURES: Actual Estimated Adopted Performance Measures FY12/13 FY13/14 FY14/15 Capital Improvements – Beaches N/A $750K $1.06M Effectiveness Capital Improvements – Parks N/A $750K $777K Capital Improvements – Reefs N/A $150K $225K Grant Funding Obtained for Improvements N/A $246K $4.1M Operations N/A N/A 35% Reserves Beach Restoration N/A N/A $2.4M East Pass Dredging N/A N/A $2.0M