ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – People in the Summer Haven community of St. Johns County can get their questions answered Tuesday about what the county is doing about damage caused by a strong nor’easter last fall.
Some property owners who have been dealing with erosion and flooding have asked the county to hire a contractor to close the beach at their own expense.
Homes in Summer Haven have a total property value of $160 million and homeowners pay $1.5 million in property taxes each year.
A meeting at 6 p.m. at St. Anastasia Catholic Church is open to the public and is designed to address the future of the area.
FEMA completed a dune restoration project in Summer Haven less than a month before a nor’easter destroyed all that work in early November. The storm also created a breach into the Summer Haven River, increasing flooding concerns.
Several homes along old A1A were imminently threatened by it.
Jeannie Cardany is a part-time Summer Haven resident. She travels back and forth from here to upstate New York for work.
“It’s really sad,” said Jeannie Cardany.
Cardany hopes commissioners will do everything in their power to prevent future storm damage.
“I’m aware of many of the flooding issues down here. Of course, we know what science shows that it’s only going to get worse. So, anything they can do to protect the area I would really be in favor of that,” Cardany said.
Damage caused by the nor’easter would cost over $1 million to fix. County commissioners are exploring options.
One would be to purchase the affected homes on Old A1A and allow the beach to recover to its natural state.