Tampa Canal Preservation & Restoration (Tampa CPR)

Tampacpr.org

Executive Summary

 

Tampa CPR is a group of waterfront property owners who have joined together in an effort to clean up the canals in the City of Tampa.  Our goal is to create a partnership between the waterfront residents and the City.   We seek to enhance our environment by creating a comprehensive waterway management plan that results in the initial dredging and ongoing maintenance of the canals.  

 

History

 

Over the years, many individual citizens and groups have worked tirelessly on this issue.  While some progress was made with several city administrations and councils over the years, a long-term solution was never reached.  Adding to the problem was the amount of confusion and debate throughout the community regarding the composition and source of the sediment, how best to remove and dispose of it, and finally how the project could be funded.

 

One of the major challenges with cleaning and maintaining Tampa’s waterways is the diversity of the canals.  Some are very narrow, while others are quite wide.  The depths vary as do the conditions of the seawalls and docks.  All of this combined to drive early estimates to over $20 million to clean up the waterways, so it was considered unfeasible for many years.

 

Tired and frustrated by the lack of progress, and wanting to explore any and all options to clean up the waterways, a group of residents approached the City again about two years ago.   It was then a dialogue began about the possibility of forming a partnership with the City.   Around that same time, the City of Tampa was awarded a $1.3 million federal grant to improve the waterways and make environmental enhancements.  At the resident’s request, Chuck Walter, Director of Stormwater for the City of Tampa, met with groups of residents in the fall of 2005 and throughout 2006 to explain how a partnership between the City and the residents could work.  Feedback from the affected residents was overwhelmingly positive.  Energized by a rally in February 2007, the group of neighborhood leaders formed Tampa Canal Preservation & Restoration.

 

The Plan

 

In order to reduce the cost and limit the impact on docks and seawalls, Chuck Walter suggested using the same methodology that is used for snow removal in the north, which is to “plow the road” with a 20 foot wide channel (where possible) down the middle of each canal.  A depth of three feet at mean low water (MLW) was suggested and was used to establish a level of service (LOS) for the canals.  Each canal was surveyed to determine which ones met the LOS (20 foot wide by 3 foot deep channel down the middle of the canal).  There are approximately 600 “affected properties” in the Westshore and Davis Islands areas that do not meet LOS.

 

Based on the estimated amount of material that would need to be removed to bring these 600 properties above the LOS, the cost of the project would be approximately $6 million.  This cost would include environmental enhancements like planting vegetation and oyster beds that would provide habitat and water quality improvements.  Estimates were done at $50 per cubic yard and $100 per cubic yard.  Tampa CPR has had discussions with contractors that yielded estimates of $55 per cubic yard for typical dredging up to $100 per cubic yard for “special situations” like narrow canals and areas with low overhead clearance.  The $6 million estimate is based on $100 per cubic yard, so Tampa CPR considers this to be on the conservative (high) side.  Apply the $1.3 million grant and City matching funds and the cost of the project comes to around $8,000 per lot.  The City is currently working on the details of the payment options, but early estimates are:

 

  1. Pay in full (i.e. $8,000)
  2. Finance for 20 years (i.e. $600 per year for 20 years)
  3. Defer payment (lien property and pay nothing until a “triggering event” like the sale of the property.  Interest would accrue.)

 

Many of the residents expressed their concern about the long-term maintenance of the canals.  We are proposing a second assessment area to fund the maintenance.  The benefit of this would be that the money collected could not be used for any other purpose than to provide maintenance dredging for the canals in the assessment area.  The exact amount has not been determined at this time, but $50 - $75 per year per lot is the current estimate.

 

The estimated time line of the project is as follows:

 

 

Important Note:  This Executive Summary contains a lot of estimates.  The final details, including costs, can not be known until the engineering and bidding process is completed.  The engineering and bidding can not be done until the scope of the project is finalized (see estimated time line above).

 

Next Steps

 

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 25TH, 10:00AM, CITY COUNCIL "WORKSHOP"

 

It is extremely important that Council hear from those in favor, preferably live and in person. They have heard from those opposed many, many, many times. Remember Canal Captain, and long time fighter for this cause, Frank Gassler's key points in response to our opposition's position "The City should clean up the mess on their own." To this we reply "WE AGREE 100%!", but the stubborn adherence to this position has not resulted in one bit of sediment removal in the last 20+ years. The only reason the City's staff is collaborating with Tampa CPR at this time is due to the environmental (not navigable) dredging that is going to occur. The window of opportunity to INCREASE THE SCOPE of the project they're doing, and take advantage of cost efficiencies for project management, mobilization and sediment disposal is NOW and will not last long.  

 

 

 

The projected schedule is being enhanced with more details and will soon be shared with you.     Remember, the ONLY thing that must happen within 4Q '07 is City Council's approval of our use of the uniform method of billing (via tax collector). Finalization of costs, which canals are included, which canals are excluded, etc., will all be confirmed in 2008 and we will all have opportunity (and responsibility)  to make sure our project is on track and within original budget estimates at several public hearings. Council will not be voting at the workshop; that date is TBD.

 

With your help, we can make clean and usable waterways a reality.

 

Thank you and we look forward to seeing you on October 1st or 3rd.

Tampa Canal Preservation & Restoration Co Chairs

Michael Weigner & Christine Acosta