PALM BEACH, Fla. — An 18-month seawall replacement project on Palm Beach is raising questions from residents and beachgoers about why the entire stretch of Midtown Beach needs to close, what access will remain during construction and what the new seawall will look like.
Construction is expected to begin in January 2027 and continue through summer 2028.
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For people who consider Midtown Beach part of their everyday lives, a year and a half without normal access is a major concern.
"I hope it doesn't get higher though, I don't want to block the view," said Bridget St. Laurent, a local and owner of Palm Beach Beauty Lab on Palm Beach. "It's my life, it's my backyard, I grew up here, and the fact I can just take a five-minute drive to the ocean means so much."
Those questions and concerns brought people to a public outreach meeting with project leaders.
"The beach, they're going to take the beach away from us. I've been there for 35 years, and there's always been a beach, and now we can't go to the beach and they can't seem to explain why they have to close the whole Midtown Beach, why can't they do it in sections," said Sheila Hurley, who lives in a condo along the beach.
"That's a lot of beach to close," Hurley said.
Two weeks ago, the Town Council voted to replace the seawall all at once instead of completing the work in sections. The town says doing the project in sections would have taken twice as long and cost twice as much.
When WPTV reporter Joel Lopez asked Hurley whether she would have been OK with that alternative, she said, "I think so, I think people would've been happier. I don't think people want the beach gone for a year and a half."
Why now?
Town officials say waiting to replace the seawall carries its own risks.
"The reason why we're doing this now is the wall is failing. If we lose the seawall in front of this condominium stretch, $7 billion of real estate is at stake. I don't see why you don't do it now," a town official said.
Jake Hurley, senior project engineer and project manager for the Midtown Seawall project, told WPTV that engineering reports have found the existing seawall is at the end of its useful life.
"So there's a lot of different factors in that, the main being that we've had these engineering reports that support the wall's at the end of its useful life, and that's a polite way of saying that we need to replace it," Hurley said. "There's also other factors because we have just completed our renourishment cycle; we have the sand available that protects the seawall while it's being constructed."
Hurley said planning has been underway for years.
"We've also been working on this since 2020, so we've been working on funding and a lot of the permitting efforts. So it's all led to us coming to this progressive design-build, and that's why the time is right," Hurley said.
What will happen to beach access?
One of the biggest questions WPTV has received is whether people will still be able to use the beach during construction.
Hurley said normal access to Midtown Beach will be closed because of safety concerns involving the construction site and heavy equipment.
"No, I don't think you're gonna want to lay on the beach while it's going on. There's gonna be some heavy equipment, but we have to close the beach access because we don't believe there's a safe way for us to bring people from the roadway onto the beach," Hurley said.
However, that doesn't necessarily mean the entire shoreline will be inaccessible at all times.
"We can't close the ocean, so there will be times when you'll be able to traverse the beach north-south as long as you are more towards the water side," Hurley said.
The space he's referring to is east of a berm that's between the ocean and construction activity. Hurley said the barrier will help protect sea turtles from entering the construction area while also keeping people away from the job site.
"So if you're thinking from the ocean side, it protects the wildlife, mainly the turtles, from coming into the construction site. And then the same with human wildlife, so that people aren't walking onto the construction site," Hurley said. "But no matter what construction method we end up with, there will be some kind of fencing on that side that separates the job site from the ocean."
Sea turtle nesting season is also playing a major role in how the work is scheduled.
"Sea turtle nesting season is a major contributing factor in how we schedule the construction," Hurley said. "We cannot be on the beach unless we have a berm already constructed there."
What will the new seawall look like?
While the project is still in its design phase, Hurley said the new wall is expected to be about six inches higher on average and extend farther east than the existing wall.
He also explained that the portion of the existing seawall people see today is largely decorative.
"The structural component of the wall is actually underground. Everything that we see above ground is decorative," Hurley said.
The replacement is intended to provide more protection while maintaining the familiar look of the existing wall.
"So the intent is for it to be identical to what is out there. So it'll be the same color. We even went out and found the original molds that are the scallops that were put in, I think in the 80s. So it's going to look very similar to what's out there," Hurley said.
Hurley said the existing above-ground wall "doesn't actually serve a purpose" and described it as sacrificial.
"So this new wall is going to actually provide resiliency and protect the community," Hurley said.
Other changes could come with the project
Plans are also being considered to create walking space around the east side of the Worth Avenue clock tower.
Hurley said the location of the existing seawall creates complications around the landmark.
"So the main reason is that the original seawall butts up directly adjacent to that, so there's no way for us to put the seawall without damaging the clock tower," Hurley said. "So we have to go seaward, and that's what we're permitted for."
The project team is also recommending another beach access point on the north end of the project.
"We do agree that there is a lot of people who are jumping the wall. That's why we did add the, or we're recommending to add the beach access on the north end," Hurley said.
The town also plans to relocate fragments of vegetation along the seawall during construction and reinstall cuttings after the replacement is complete.
What happens next?
Phase one of the project's design is expected to be completed in fall 2026.
The project's guaranteed maximum price has not yet been finalized. Hurley said the town hopes to present that figure to the Town Council in December.
Construction is scheduled to begin in January 2027, with completion planned for summer 2028.
Project officials plan to host more community meetings as details on the project get finalized.
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