Reconstruction on Port Orange causeway park piers set to be completed by the beginning of July

Ormond Beach Observer
News

First there was Hurricane Matthew, then there was Hurricane Irma. Not only did the impact of the severe weather cause damage to buildings and roads, it also damaged Port Orange's three Causeway Park Piers, which line Dunlawton Bridge.

Now, this year marks the start of a new project to reconstruct the piers in order for residents to be able to use them again. The current project, which began on Monday, Jan. 29, is expected to cost $1,117,250. The city has brought on Brothers Construction Inc. as the contractor and Dredging and Marine Consultants for design.

Hurricane Matthew destroyed the T pier and heavily damaged the east and west piers, which were damaged even further after Hurricane Irma. This damage made the fishing pier unusable.

Hurricane damage has left Port Orange's piers severely damaged. Photo by Nichole Osinski

The construction of the piers will follow the same footprint of what was originally built and the design will match what the city has at Riverwalk.

Construction, which will be happening five days a week, is set to be completed by July 2, 2018.

Funding for this project will be coming from FEMA reimbursements, a disaster grant from the Florida Inland Navigation District FIND and city funding. According Public Information Officer Christine Martindale, construction on the piers didn't start until this year as the city was still waiting on additional funding.

"This park is very highly used and is the closest boat ramps to the inlet," Martindale wrote in an email. "It provides our citizens with access to the river year-round and free of charge."

Jackie Clark, who uses to area to fish, said that when she arrived at the river the other day she just sat along the bank then decided to not even fish. She pointed out that fishing along the bank can have other problems.

"It's ridiculous," Clark said. "Because if you go into there it smells terrible if you're at the wrong time of the tide."

One pier on the east side will be completely rebuilt, the second one is going to be 90% rebuilt and the third, also on the east side, will be demolished.

Parks and Recreation Director Susan Lovallo said the pier is being demolished due to the whole structure being moved during the hurricane. However, Lovallo explained that most of the usage the city sees is on the west side and, as people will still be able to fish from the seawalls, there will still be capacity left.

"A lot of the residents in my district here really like the causeway piers, there's a lot of fishermen," Councilman Bob Ford said. "Sometimes you don't realize how important things are in people's lives until they go away and I would say this was basically something a lot of the people enjoyed."