In the early 2000’s, beachfront property owners on South Hutchinson Island approached St. Lucie County’s Board of County Commissioners with a request for help in protecting their eroded shoreline. Though this area is largely privately owned and the County is not mandated to protect it, Erosion District/County staff responded with a nearly two-decade-long effort to have those beaches federalized, meaning they would receive long-term funding assistance and management from the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers (USACE).

In 2013, with the lengthy approval process stretching over many years and no end in sight, the Erosion District spearheaded a one-time local project to help keep the beaches intact while the federalization effort continued. Another five years passed and in 2018, success was finally achieved when Congress approved the federal project with authorization in the 2018 Water Resource and Development Act (WRDA).

The planned 50-year project would ensure federal involvement -- and significant cost share -- for the 3.3-mile project area at the southern end of Hutchinson Island. Despite the large private ownership, this beachfront is essential to the public for what these properties contribute to the County’s economy through the recreation, tourism and environmental benefits derived.

The loss of this shoreline could devastate beachfront structures and properties, exposing the entire width of the island to the erosive ocean forces that are only expected to increase into future.