Southern Region - Southwest Florida Water Management District

N263
WMP - Manatee - Watershed Evaluation (Incl N215)
Project Type
AORs
Flood Protection
Cooperative Funding
Strategic Initiatives
Floodplain Management
Manatee County, Lynn Townsend & Associates, LLC.
Cooperator(s)
Project Manager Nam Nguyen
Task Manager(s)
Status
Proposed Coop. Funding Application
Recommendation
Fund as a High priority. This request is for increased funding for a multi-year project that implements a Watershed Management
Plan (WMP) for serveral entities in Manatee County. This request is specifically for Anna Maria Island which is one of several
cooperators on this project.
Description
This is a multi-year funded project to perform the Watershed Evaluation element of the District's Watershed Management Program
(WMP). The project area contains 740-square miles in Manatee County, 0.51 square miles in City of Bradenton Beach, 0.74 square
miles in City of Anna Maria and 1.57 square miles in City of Holmes Beach. The Watershed Evaluation element is the collection
and organization of detailed information such as land elevation, ditches, culverts and other stormwater management features that
affect how water moves within a watershed. The Watershed Evaluation tasks include the collection of existing data, development of
the geodatabase, Geographical Information System (GIS) processing, field reconnaissance, and development of preliminary
model features. The information is organized as a geodatabase in the GIS. The Watershed Evaluation establishes the complexity
of the watershed and provides a geodatabase that defines the watershed's natural conveyance and storage features, and
stormwater infrastructure. With FY2013 funding, the City of Anna Maria and City of Bradenton Beach are proposing to add additional
dollars to their previous fiscal years' funding to complete the field reconnaissance task for their portion of the project area. The
entire project area includes the western portion of unincorporated Manatee County, mainly west of I-75 and the Anna Maria Island,
which includes the 3 Cities mentioned above. Future funding may be required to complete the remaining tasks.
Benefits
The Watershed Evaluation is the foundation for the Watershed Management Plan which will be the next phase. The WMP provides
a method to evaluate the capacity of a watershed to protect, enhance, and restore water quality and natural systems, while
achieving flood protection. The information developed provides the science for the District's Resource Management and
Environmental Resource Permitting (ERP). It assists local governments: 1) with their land management responsibilities by
establishing a level of service and developing Best Management Practices (BMPs) to address level of service deficiencies; and 2)
provides a Geodatabase and projected results from watershed model simulations for floodplain management, and water quality.
Costs
The projected cost for this project is $830,000, of which the District's share is $415,000 and the combined cooperators' share is
$415,000. Manatee County has contributed $370,000. City of Anna Maria contributed $10,000. City of Bradenton Beach contributed
$10,000. City of Holmes Beach contributed $25,000. For FY2013, $5,000 is included in the District's budget, of which the City of
Anna Maria will contribute $2,500 and City of Bradenton Beach will contribute $2,500 for a total of $10,000. With FY2013 funding,
work on Watershed Evaluation tasks will allow completion the evaluation for these cities. For FY2012, $210,000 is included in the
Basin's budget and the cooperators will contribute $210,000 ($185,000 from Manatee County, $5,000 from City of Anna Maria,
$5,000 from City of Bradenton Beach and $15,000 from City of Holmes Beach) for a total of $420,000. Future funding may be
required for the remainder of the Watershed Evaluation tasks. Future funds identified for the project are contingent upon approval of
such amounts by the Governing Board in their annual budget. When each task is completed, the project cost and scope may
require refinement based on the information gathered and unforeseen circumstances. The District funding amount shown in the
table includes staff salaries.
Additional Information
The WMP includes five major elements: 1) Topographic information, 2) Watershed Evaluation, 3) Watershed Management Plan, 4)
Implementation of Best Management Practices, and 5) Maintenance of Watershed Parameters and Models. Implementing
elements of the WMP with local governments is one of the District's Strategic Priorities. The District has worked with the County
and Cities to develop an implementation schedule by watershed based on their projected funding levels. The District is managing
the project entering into agreements and purchase orders to accomplish project tasks. A cooperative funding agreement has
been developed as a multi-year funded project contingent on the approval of future funding to complete the project. This project will
require a cooperative funding request each fiscal year until completed. If approved, this project will be ranked as a 1A project in
future fiscal years.
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