By Steve Plunkett
County officials have put an accountant’s touch on the local match needed for grants to convert Lake Wyman spoil islands into thriving mangrove canoe trails and a manatee stopover.
“Sharpening the pencil, we can move $36,000 from local share into county share. That leaves county at $455,457 and local at $383,177,” Rob Robbins, deputy director of the county’s Environmental Resources Management Department, emailed County Commissioner Steven Abrams.
Abrams forwarded the information to City Council members and the Greater Boca Raton Beach and Park District in December.
“City advisory boards and many of our constituents agree that this is a worthwhile project that will enhance water quality, wildlife habitat, recreation and public access to an important waterway in our city,’’ Abrams wrote, asking that the city and the beach-park district take “formal steps’’ to participate. “I hope we can work together to move it forward.’’
The original proposal called for $419,000 in matching money from the county and $419,000 from the city or the beach-park district or both. The county secured $2.1 million for the project from the Florida Inland Navigation District, the taxing body that maintains the Intracoastal Waterway and owns the largest spoil island, provided it obtains matching funds.
“The clock is ticking,’’ Abrams wrote.
Abrams said residents want Lake Wyman Park and neighboring Rutherford Park on the west side of the Intracoastal cleaned up.
The project would remove 11 acres of Australian pine and Brazilian pepper from FIND’s island and two smaller spoil islands created as the Intracoastal Waterway was dredged in the 1930s. About 72,000 cubic yards of spoil material would be excavated to create mangrove and seagrass habitat and maritime hammock.
The excavated earth would be spread over Lake Wyman Park to elevate ball fields and reduce flooding.
FIND’s island would be scooped out to create a 3.3-acre basin where manatees could munch on seagrass. Day boaters would have a dock with six slips. Upland areas would have picnic tables and a crushed-rock road for emergency and maintenance vehicles.
About 1 mile of canoe trails would be restored to increase tidal flushing around mangroves and make the trails passable at low tide. The boardwalk would be extended to reach the picnic areas, two beach areas and an observation platform near the shore opposite Gumbo Limbo Nature Center.
“I think this is a very special place and we need to have special places for all the tourists that are coming in,’’ resident Lenore Wachtel said Dec. 12, imploring City Council members at a workshop to find the matching money.
City Manager Leif Ahnell said he would report back at a future council meeting. Ú
Comments