SINGER ISLAND, Fla. — Palm Beach County said it has no plans to restore beaches along Singer Island this year, according to records WPTV obtained from the county.
County staff said it made the decision not to place sand on the 1.3 miles of beach, with some areas accessible and not accessible to the public, based on the feasibility of construction, along with cost effectiveness and partial budget considerations. A citizens group based in Singer Island is urging the county to reverse course because they fear the decision will permanently destroy beaches, which will hurt their property values and destroy marine habitat.
Frank Fernandez and Sue Malamud, who are the Co-Chair for the Singer Island Environmental Committee, submitted a petition against the decisions with “several hundred” signatures in an email to County Commissioners and Riviera Beach City Staff on March 9. They said they are already seeing problems from potential buyers over the issue.
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“We have seen a significant decline in both sales prices and sales volume over the past year, with realtors citing complaints from potential buyers as well as tourists as the lack of beach area,” Fernandez and Malamud wrote. “Lower property values result in lower property tax revenue to both the County and the City of Riviera Beach, and loss of tourism adversely affects the local economy.”
County staff said they have spent $21.7 Million since 2021 to continue restoring dunes along the mile-long stretch of beach along Singer Island. Staff said they have serious concerns about nourishing dunes, which don’t last more than one season, compared to other projects with a return frequency of 5 to 8 years.
“The challenge is that despite our best efforts and historically inequitable program resources dedicated to the project, the beach at Singer Island is unable to be sustained in front of the seawalls to a condition that is acceptable to the residents,” staff wrote in a 16-page response to the Singer Island Environmental Committee. “Upon completion of the Feasibility Study (summer 2027), staff intends to workshop the recommendations of the report with the BCC to seek direction on pursuing regulatory permits for an erosion control project alternative.”
Staff also recommended that the City of Riviera Beach consider taking primary responsibility for annual sand placement to meet its residents’ needs, with the County participating as a 20% cost-share partner in publicly accessible areas, similar to arrangements used by other municipalities.
According to a map, those publicly accessible areas would apply to the residents of Eastpointe 1, like Jim Rumbaugh, who is on the condominium building’s board. He said he’s concerned the delay will make the issue even worse because erosion will continue and their building needs help from the government now.
“Everybody deserves help,” Rumbaugh said. Everybody needs clean water. Everybody needs good sewers. Everybody needs help with their highway, maybe their neighborhood. This is the help we need.”
He also said he’s concerned about another feasibility study because he remembers a previous study done in the past, which resulted in no action.
According to county staff, it tried to obtain state and federal permits to build 11 breakwaters along the shoreline. But, the County Board of Commissioners lost at least $2.2 Million on permit costs after it voted to terminate the project after state and federal regulatory agencies couldn’t reach a nonsense on a project design.
Rumbaugh said he doesn’t think his building has time to wait for another study.
