JUPITER ISLAND, Fla. — Two state reports are raising urgent new concerns about the future of Jupiter Island — and what's at stake goes far beyond the beach.
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A Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) Vulnerability Assessment completed in March identified multiple critical assets on Jupiter Island at risk of flooding, including stormwater facilities, historic sites, conservation lands, a government facility, and even the town's Emergency Operations Center.
The findings come on the heels of a separate FDEP report that found more than 11 miles of Jupiter Island's shoreline are so critically eroded the ocean could break through Peck Lake in Hobe Sound.
"It's crazy. The houses are literally on stilts, and the waves are eating the houses," Hobe Sound resident Fonda Cash said.
For locals like Cash, the threat is impossible to ignore.
"It's a huge concern for me, and they say this year is supposed to be pretty wet," she said.
Beachgoer Alex Brentworth described the situation this way: "It's like a tug of war and we're stuck in the middle of it."
While a breach may sound unthinkable, longtime Jupiter Island resident Harry MacArthur says it wouldn't be the first time.
The longtime owner of Harry and the Natives restaurant shared photos of a storm that opened Peck Lake into an inlet in the early 1960s — before the Army Corps of Engineers closed it.
"It's the breakthrough of Peck Lake, 1963, right there," MacArthur said, pointing to the photos. "It would break through right there — a quarter mile on each side of it."
Beyond the flood risk, the erosion is already threatening critical wildlife habitats and partially destroying the Joseph Reed Mound — an archaeological site believed to be more than 3,000 years old.
"I think, as much as we can save in the state of Florida, we need to save, because people need to know the history," MacArthur said.
The Vulnerability Assessment notes that the study positions Jupiter Island to pursue future state funding for flood mitigation and infrastructure projects.
Town leaders told WPTV they are always interested in seeking state or federal funding that could help.
MacArthur says action is needed now.
"Oh, extremely. That's what we fought for since I was only like 12 or 13 years old," he said.
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