Excerpts from Blueway Trail Coalition Meeting Recap from April

To read the entire recap from the meeting held at the South Florida Water Management District (SFWMD) headquarters use this link. The next meeting is tomorrow (Friday, June 24th) at 10:00 am at SFWMD located at 3301 Gun Club Rd. Here are excerpts from the meeting on April 4th:

An initial update was given confirming the $286,900 dollars in state funding appropriated during the recent Legislative Session and that the Treasure Coast Regional Planning Council will be the contracting agency with the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity and the responsible entity for disbursing the funds.

The following topics were discussed:

• Boat Lift permitting: With the SFWMD present and the Army Corps of Engineers participating via telephone, all the aspects of completing a "408" and "404" permit were discussed.
• Fishing piers: The fishing piers on the north and south side of the C-51 are currently closed due to disrepair.
• Boat Lift Design: Because more research is needed before a final determination can be made as to the most suitable, durable and efficient boat lift itself, Chuck Collins with the Marine Industries Association, volunteered to chair a subcommittee to research boat lift design and make a recommendation to the Working Group.

Marketing and promotion of the creation of a new Blueway Trail as well as opening access to the Chain of Lakes has primarily focused upon securing state funding for permit completion. Shifting to community outreach and updating the marketing materials that have been produced to-date is now the focus of Blueway Trail initiative.

Meeting attendees:
Todd Bonlarron, PBC BCC
Dan Clark, Town of Lake Clarke Shores
Chuck Collins, MIA PBC
Laura Corry, SFWMD
Lucine Dadrian, SFWMD
Karen Estock, SFWMD
Dorothy Gravelin, Town of Cloud Lake
Mark Hightower, WPB Fishing Club
Jim Karas, Keith & Schnars
Dave Kemer, State Representative
Tom Lanahan, Greenacres
Charity Lewis, Cong. Lois Frankel
Wally Majors, Boynton Beach
Debbie Manzo, Lantana
Jean Mathews, PBC Parks Dpt.
Alice McLane, Glen Ridge
Richard Pinsky, Akerman, LLC
Melissa Santoro, Senator Clemens
Val Rodriguez, Town of Lake Clark Shores
Kenneth Weming, Keith & Schnars
Bob Vitas, South Palm Beach

Proceed to the next blog post to see the video produced about the Blueway Trail.