Despite St. Pete Beach approval, neighbors vow to continue fighting the docks, which also require county, state and federal approval.
By SHEILA MULLANE ESTRADA
Published April 18, 2004
ST. PETE BEACH - Commissioners approved a 22-slip dock Tuesday over residents' protests that it would endanger manatees that frequent their sheltered cove.
The commission's unanimous vote represents a first step for the developers of the proposed Boca Sands condominium complex. They must get similar approvals at the county, state and federal levels before construction can begin.
The residents' opposition did prompt a tweaking of Boca Sands' original request. The commission cut the number of slips from 24 to 22. It also eliminated two floating docks, which it said would create a bottleneck for some residents, and reduced the length of the boat slips from 40 or 50 feet to a maximum of 35 feet.
"We're not giving up. We intend to continue the fight," said Linda Chaney, who lives across the water from the proposed development. "We're not saying that there should not be docks - just that this is an unreasonable number.'
Chaney is the founder of Citizens for Responsible Government, an organization of more than 100 residents and property owners living on or near a cove between Gulf Boulevard, Aloha Dive and Punta Vista Drive.
The residents want the development restricted to no more than seven boat slips. The group also wants the city to reduce the 10 dock slips proposed in the site plan for the Belle Grande, another development directly north and adjacent to Boca Sands. A formal request for docks at the Belle Grande has not been made.
"It's just a matter of time before manatees are killed," said Steve Gordon, a resident who has lived in the neighborhood for 42 years.
Boca Sands is in the 5300 block of Gulf Boulevard and has about 700 feet of frontage on Boca Ciega Bay. A site plan for the 64-unit, multistory complex has been approved by the city, but no building permits have been requested.
"I object to the impression that the development is trying to despoil the area," said Tom Rogers, who represented Boca Sands before the commission. "We have made an honest attempt to design Boca Sands in compliance with the surrounding community."
Martha Collins, an attorney hired by the residents who also has represented the Save the Manatee organization, argued that the city had a burden to ensure that the Boca Sands docks would not adversely affect the neighborhood and the environment.
Collins cited six watercraft-related manatee deaths in the area. "Boats and manatees don't mix," she said, adding that the city was required by its code to consider environmental issues.
Developers presented some environmental impact data to the city but did not address the manatee issue. They told the commission that was not required by the city, state or federal agencies.
However, the safety of manatees is an important issue for the county as well as state and federal agencies that review dock permit applications, said Dave Walker, environmental program manager for Pinellas County.
"The manatees will have to be addressed," Walker said, adding that the Boca Sand dock issue could take up to six months to work its way through the permitting process.
