VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – Nearly eight months after hurricanes devastated homes and other properties off the coast in Volusia County, residents are still awaiting permit approval for seawall construction.
Daytona Beach Shores Commissioner Richard Bryan hosted an informational meeting Thursday about what it takes to protect your home before the next hurricane season.
Ken Meister calls Volusia County his home, but he’s temporarily living in Naples.
“We just want solutions so that we can get back to normal,” Meister said.
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Part of his home in Wilbur by the Sea was destroyed last year after back-to-back hurricanes.
“My home, most of it fell into the ocean,” Meister said. “So we are asking for the ability to build a seawall now to protect everything we do going forward.”
He sat in the informational meeting, eager to learn more about his options.
Bryan and coastal engineers informed concerned residents about seawalls and temporary armoring, explaining how it protects properties.
“The local and county government has really been good. They’ve been very helpful. They’re trying to make the processes we are productive as possible,” Meister said.
He and other residents are still racing the clock because turtle nesting season begins May 1.
Residents will have to be started with construction before May 1 or else wait until October. As of April, several permits still haven’t been approved, including Meister’s, because they are still under review.
Until they are approved, construction is stalled for many.
“If we don’t get our permit this week, then the phone calls will pick up next week because we’re running out of time,” Meister said.
He also said the county should put pressure on the Florida Department of Environmental Protection so that they will allow residents to bring in local sand.
Meister said that when it is time to rebuild his property, he needs loads of sand, and getting it elsewhere could cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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