South Siesta renourishment out for bid

Sarasota County procurement staff recently posted a bid solicitation for the second phase of the Turtle Beach Restoration, which puts a majority of project responsibility on the winning contractor.

The county nearly depleted four fill-sand locations in the Gulf of Mexico when 922,300 cubic yards of sediment were dredged to renourish Turtle Beach in 2007, according to the contract description. The firm procurement staff recommends will oversee permitting and a potential sand-search excursion, along with the engineering and construction.

The county expects the project timeline to begin in November of 2014 and end in March of the following year. Beach nourishments are usually required every decade, but the extent of erosion on Turtle Beach prompted the county to request expediency from the winning bidder.