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Treasure Island continues discussion on marina plans
By LEE DIEKEMPER
| Article published on Wednesday, May 30, 2007 |
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TREASURE ISLAND – The attributes of Treasure Island are numerous. But a potential jewel may be a step closer to reality.
In the budget for the upcoming new year, the city plans to include steps to obtain grant money and to undertake feasibility studies for construction of, and an upgrade to, both a Treasure Bay Golf and Tennis marina and an expansion of the current city marina.
The city looks upon the project as a money maker. The Treasure Bay Golf and Tennis marina would give mariners a place to dock their boat just a short distance to the Intracoastal Waterway.
The city marina expansion would be part of the city’s downtown redevelopment project. It would give sailors the chance to dock their boat at the city marina and spend a day in Treasure island, spending money at various hotels, shops, nightspots and restaurants.
While the two projects are far from a ground-breaking ceremony, talks and discussions are hardly new for each project.
“Right now it’s pretty much up in the air,” city Recreation Director Cathy Heyduke said of the projects’ design. Since the two projects would fall under her department, she is one of the front people for the two efforts.
“Grant money still has to be secured and we still need to do surveys and seawall surveys as well. There are a lot of hoops to jump through before you see any docks out there,” she said.
The projects were first discussed by former city manager Chuck Howard. His successor, Ralph Stone, who always looked for ways to help the city’s financial bottom line thought the projects could bring needed additional revenue into the city’s coffers. He also thought the city marina expansion could be included into the planned downtown redevelopment project.
“We talked about this for a number of years,” Heyduke said. “When Chuck Howard was here he talked about partnering with the yacht club to offer a junior sailing program.
“And then Ralph Stone progressed with it further to include the city marina into the downtown redevelopment plan. So it’s been a few years in the making.”
With the Treasure Bay Tennis and Golf marina project, the city must first determine there is money to be made.
“We need to find out what we should charge to make a profit in order to pay back the loans,” Heyduke said. “If there’s not a profit to be made, we won’t go any further with it.”
One potential design would be to have a line of slips from about the No. 3 tee of the golf course to the parking lot.
Before the city marina expansion can proceed, aside from funding, another of steps need to be addressed:
• How to avoid impacts to sea grass beds.
• Provide reasonable assurance that the project would not negatively impact manatees.
• The project would not negatively impact water quality or tidal activity.
• The design would have to comply with the city’s regulation of that docks not exceed 50 feet beyond the seawall.
• The facility would be designed to ensure navigational access to adjacent waters and not impede other vessels moored to the structure.
The Treasure Bay project has two potential layouts: One would allow for a total of 35 40-foot slips with a common dock providing access to each slip and the other allows for 41 40-foot slips with four-finger piers with a various number of slips that extends from the common access dock.
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Article published on Wednesday, May 30, 2007
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