One year after Hurricane Nicole: boardwalks, beaches still remain unrepaired

A year after Hurricane Nicole swept through the Treasure Coast, much of the damage remains unrepaired as cities and counties wait for federal reimbursement money.

The Category 1 storm made landfall Nov. 10, causing millions in damage to boardwalks, beaches and boat ramps across the region.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency so far has reimbursed the Treasure Coast about $1.07 million for repairs. St. Lucie County, including municipalities and unincorporated areas, has received the most, with just over $1 million, according to FEMA. Indian River County sustained $62,610 in damager and Martin County just $4,298.

FEMA reimburses governments 75% of their eligible expenses incurred from a storm, with the Florida Division of Emergency Management picking up about 12.5%. The remaining 12.5% falls on local governments, explained Martin County spokeswoman Martha Ann Kneiss. But local governments must lay out their share in advance and wait for reimbursement from federal and state sources, she said.

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FEMA reimbursement sometimes takes years to arrive, officials say.

After a storm, the county has to assess the damage and close off or repair critical areas, Kneiss said. FEMA must inspect the damage, and permits for repairs often are required by the Army Corps of Engineers, the South Florida Water Management District and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, she said.

Martin County still fixing storm damage

Martin County sustained an estimated $9.8 million in damage from Hurricane Nicole, with the worst south of The Mansion at Tuckahoe, a historic Mediterranean-style home the county maintains in Indian RiverSide Park, according to Kneiss.

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Nicole damaged the riverfront seawall, sidewalk and shoreline south of the mansion.

About 62% of the damage sustained in Martin County, including some piers and seawalls in parks, remains unrepaired, Kneiss said.

The most costly damage —– an estimated $2.5 million — was at Bathtub Reef Beach, Kneiss said. About 68,544 cubic yards of material was lost from the beaches to hurricanes Nicole and Ian. Repairs are to begin early next year as part of an upcoming beach project, after the completion of the MacArthur Boulevard Resilience Project.

Indian RiverSide Park repairs were recently completed, while repairs continue at Jensen Beach Causeway and Sandspirit Park's boardwalk and fishing piers. Repairs to the Twin Rivers Park seawall are scheduled.

Still to be scheduled are repairs to pavilions at Hobe Sound, Jensen and Stuart beaches, Kneiss said.

Vero Beach boardwalk still unrepaired

Vero Beach sustained about $11.6 million dollars in damage, said Public Works Director Matthew Mitts said. Conn Beach sustained the most damage, taking about a $9 million hit to the boardwalk, beach and on-street parking. Nicole left a path of another $2 million in damage to the Humiston Beach boardwalk; $556,000 to the Riverside Park boat ramp; and $67,000 to the Bahia Mar Dune Crossover, Mitts said.

Some on-street parking and portions of the Conn Beach boardwalk remain damaged, said Mitts. Parts of the Conn Beach Boardwalk and beach-access stairs were restored in May. The city also is still repairing floating docks at the Riverside Park boat ramp, he said.

The city is waiting for FEMA to come up with its share of repairs at Conn Beach and for removal and repair of the Humiston Beach boardwalk, Mitts said.

Hurricane Nicole hit Indian River County directly, but did little damage, officials say

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Those boardwalk repairs are two to three years away, Mitts said.

"Until we get funding answers from FEMA, we can't chart a path forward for the boardwalks," Mitts said.

The docks are expected to be complete next summer, he said.

St. Lucie repairs nearly done

Much of the storm damage in St. County and its municipalities has been repaired, officials said.

Port St. Lucie incurred $1.65 million in damage — a fraction of the $1.1 billion total from Hurricane Nicole, estimated by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration ― said spokesperson Sarah Prohaska.

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While islands helped protect the Fort Pierce City Marina, at least 15 historic homes in St. Lucie Village flooded.

There was no damage to the village's two properties – the town hall and school – St. Lucie Village Mayor William Thiess said.

“The roads were flooded, I mean there was an airboat running up and down North Indian River Drive,” Thiess said. “There were no FEMA claims; we didn’t handle any claims by the village. If there were any claims at all it was just a handful of homeowners with their insurance companies.”

Port St. Lucie has spent about $150,000 to repair the damage, much of which is concentrated in parks and related to storm surge along the St. Lucie River, Prohaska said. Other than the parks, all damage to city facilities has been repaired. Park repairs remain in the design, scope and permitting phase, and will take months to complete, she said.

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St. Lucie County has spent $920,000 repairing damage from Hurricane Nicole, according to spokesperson Erick Gill. The primary damage in the unincorporated areas came from storm surge at Walton Rocks Beach, where, Gill said, about 4 feet of sand and debris was washed up onto the parking lot from the beach. More than 1,000 sea oat plants recently were planted to help stabilize the dune there, Gill said. In addition to beach cleanup, the county’s costs from the storm include the operation of shelters and costs associated with acquiring equipment, materials and administrative support.

Both the city and county are seeking FEMA reimbursement.

“The city will get between 75% and 100% of this back, depending on final damage estimates and level of FEMA reimbursement and insurance coverage for each individual project,” Prohaska said in an email.  “Half of the insurance claims submitted have been (paid).  We have applied for, and have been working with, FEMA regularly on our request for reimbursement and will continue to do so until such a time where we are able to close out all projects within our request.”

Staff writers Keith Burbank, Wicker Perlis and Nick Slater contributed to this report.

Colleen Wixon is the education reporter for TCPalm. Contact her at colleen.wixon@tcpalm.com.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Hurricane Nicole's impact on the Treasure Coast still evident 1 year later