Fort Pierce Begins $15M Beach Renourishment

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is managing the project, which will place approximately 400,000 cubic yards of sand along a 1.0-mile stretch of shoreline just south of the Fort Pierce Inlet. The $15.1 million contract was awarded to Manson Construction Co., with work scheduled to begin around March 11, 2026, and last until mid-May. This effort is a continuation of a long-standing federal shore protection project that began in 1971. Since 1980, the area has undergone 14 periodic and emergency renourishments to combat persistent erosion largely attributed to the federal inlet. Funding for the project is a federal and local partnership, with the federal government covering 77.76% of the cost. St. Lucie County, the non-federal partner, contributes the remaining 22.24%, with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection typically offsetting half of the local share. The project will operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Sand will be dredged from authorized offshore borrow areas and piped onto the beach from an offloading point inside the inlet's south jetty. This large-scale renourishment follows a recent state of emergency declared in Fort Pierce in February 2026. Severe erosion created dangerous escarpments and threatened homes along South Hutchinson Island, prompting an emergency placement of 10,000 cubic yards of sand. The recurring erosion is a known issue for the area, with the Fort Pierce Inlet disrupting the natural southward flow of sand along the coast. This necessitates a renourishment cycle of approximately every two years to protect coastal infrastructure.