What Hilton Head officials are now saying about restoring the sand dunes
Last week, Hilton Head Island town officials were asking for the public’s help to restore sand dunes destroyed by Hurricane Matthew.
This week, they are saying federal money might be available for at least part of the project.
“There will likely be a town project,” Scott Liggett, the town’s chief engineer and director of public projects and facilities, said Monday. “What it’s limitations are we don’t know.”
The Federal Emergency Management Agency might reimburse the town for the cost of fixing some of the sand dunes, Liggett said. FEMA revealed the funding possibility after town officials talked to The Island Packet and The Beaufort Gazette last week, he said.
Town manager Steve Riley said then there was no budget or plan to fix the dunes, and encouraged the community to help by installing sand fences and planting sea oats.
Liggett said Monday it’s likely the town will still need the public’s help on some of the island’s beaches, though he couldn’t immediately provide specifics.
FEMA might reimburse the town up to 75 percent to replace dunes on parts of the seven miles of beach recently renourished, Liggett said. The town was in the midst of a $20.7 million renourishment project when Hurricane Matthew struck Oct. 8.
Beach areas recently renourished by the town include South Beach, Coligny Beach to Singleton Beach, Port Royal Plantation, and Fish Hall Creek to Mitchelville Beach Park.
The Category 2 storm destroyed about 95 acres of dunes on the island’s 12 miles of beaches, Liggett said.
Liggett said town staff are mapping out dune damage, including collecting historical photographs of what the dunes looked like before the hurricane.
“It will likely be at the end of April when we start soliciting bids on fence,” he said, noting the total project cost likely will be in the six figures.
Liggett said the public probably will be asked to help with fixing dune damage that FEMA won’t cover. A plan is expected to be ready by the end of this month to solicit community groups, he said.
“We would like to see Rotary Clubs, school and scout groups as opposed to an individual,” he said.
Teresa Moss: 843-706-8152, @TeresaIPBG
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This story was originally published April 3, 2017 at 4:41 PM with the headline "What Hilton Head officials are now saying about restoring the sand dunes."