In September 2019, the City retained the consulting team of E-Sciences, Incorporated to evaluate the steps necessary to establish a managed mooring field and to guide the City as to the regulatory permitting requirements. Their analysis included exploring the physical extent of a viable area west of Maurice Gibb Memorial Park, provide example layout concepts based on common vessel sizes and physical extents, present possible options for phased expansions, investigate requirements for upland support facilities and explore management options.
A mooring field is required to include a support facility on land that incorporates a dinghy dock and sewage pump-out facility. Other amenities that are often included, but are not a regulatory requirement include bathrooms, showers, and laundry. The consultant team prepared preliminary opinions of probable costs for design, permitting and construction of a 50-slip mooring field such as those presented as Phase I alternatives in this study. A preliminary opinion of probable costs for design, permitting and construction was established to be on the order of $630,000 for one phase of a mooring field and $970,000 for a harbormaster building.
Suntex Marinas owns, operates, develops marinas throughout the United States. Suntex Marinas owns the lease for the Miami Beach Marina which already has many of the upland amenities that a mooring field would require. Suntex also has experience managing mooring fields, including the Sarasota Bay Mooring Field directly adjacent to Marina Jack’s and Sarasota’s downtown. The administration is seeking direction to continue discussion with Suntex Marinas for them to provide the upland support and management of the proposed mooring field.
It should be noted that the location of the upland facilities will be needed prior to applying for Florida Inland Navigation District grant funds in March 2021.