CEPD hopes to draw Captivans to the polls for renourishment referendum
To prepare voters for the referendum, the Captiva Erosion Prevention District hosted two meetings earlier this week about the projected beach renourishment project for 2013-14.
Tuesday’s meeting presented the basics of beach renourishment and what Captivans would be voting for or against on Nov. 2, and Wednesday’s meeting was the regular board meeting of the CEPD, with special time devoted to explaining the assessment process for the 2013-14 beach project to attendees and the board.
On Tuesday, CEPD Senior Administrator Kathy Rooker said that out of 825 beaches in the state of Florida, 333 of those beaches are considered “critically eroded” and, that all of Captiva Island is considered “critically eroded” by the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.
The CEPD has conducted three beach renourishments since the late 1980s, but renourishment must take place once every eight years.
If passed, the referendum will allow the CEPD to start the bond issuing process for the 2013-14 project — it will also give them a competitive edge on the contractor bidding process and a head start at lobbying for funding from Federal, State and County agencies. The more funding the CEPD can secure from sources outside of Captiva, the less property owners will have to pay in their final assessments for the project.
By voting in favor of the Nov. 2 referendum, voters agree to support the project and the financial assessments that go along with it. Property owners will not have to pay their assessment until after the renourishment project is complete. They can then choose to either pay it in full or pay in installments over a period of time.
All mail-in ballots must be returned by Tuesday, Oct. 26 at 5 p.m.
For more information about the CEPD referendum on the Nov. 2 ballot, call the Captiva Erosion Prevention District at 472-2472 or go to www.MyCEPD.com.