Rising sea levels could impact State Road 520 causeway, other riverfront Brevard roads

Rick Neale
Florida Today
A boater snaps photographs on Stratford Drive in Cocoa, where many homes flooded from the torrential rain of Hurricane Wilma.

VIERA — Cocoa Beach officials have voiced concerns “for years and years” about the State Road 520 causeway's low-lying elevation across the Banana River, Space Coast Transportation Planning Director Bob Kamm said.

This barrier-island highway is a key corridor on a newly released list of Brevard County roadways most vulnerable to sea level rise. Sea level increases could reach up to 1.22 feet by 2040, 2.85 feet by 2070 and 5.15 feet by 2100, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projections indicate.

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“The 520 causeway, in particular, is loaded with other stuff. It’s more than a road: sewer lines, water lines, telecommunications, fiber-optic, electrical transmission,” Kamm said during Thursday's Space Coast TPO meeting at the Government Center in Viera.

“All those utilities are in that causeway. And if there is damage (and) erosion, and any of those facilities are damaged as part of a storm event, that affects the ability of recovery,” Kamm said.

Debris washed ashore along the banks of the Banana River in Cocoa Beach after Hurricane Matthew, which was packing 120 mph winds, with its storm surge destroying docks, seawalls and boardwalks in it's path .

Tara McCue, East Central Florida Regional Planning Council director of planning and community development, presented the results of a "high-level snapshot" study of rising sea level impacts on Brevard. The list of most-vulnerable roadways:

• State Road 520

• State Road A1A

• North and South Courtenay Parkway

• North Banana River Drive

• Newfound Harbor Drive

• South Patrick Drive

• South Tropical Trail

The intersection of SR 520 and US 1 in Cocoa on a wet afternoon.

“In a sense, today's flood will become tomorrow's high tide as sea levels rise,” McCue said, displaying a PowerPoint photo of an underwater Cocoa roadway after Hurricane Irma struck.

Contrary to many people's perceptions, the bulk of Brevard's vulnerable roads are threatened along the Indian River Lagoon — not the Atlantic Ocean, Kamm said.

He said sea level rise is a new topic for Brevard transportation officials. Long-term, he said planners will “flag” future road projects that lie in vulnerable locations.

Flooding at River Palms Mobile Home Park on Banana River Drive on Merritt Island.

“This is a long-term problem. Solutions aren’t going to happen overnight. Some solutions, we might not need to mess with until later on in the planning process,” said Sarah Kraum, Space Coast TPO multi-modal program specialist.

McCue said the sea level projections do not account for 100-year storms or hurricane storm surge.

Based on rising sea level data, Melbourne City Councilwoman Teresa Lopez asked if transportation funding will be increased for Space Coast road projects. Kamm said no.

Crews with the Brevard County Sheriff's office Alternative to Incarceration program load up free sand bag Monday afternoon from 8am to 3pm at the Sheriff's work farm in West Cocoa. The bags are for  Brevard County residence that are concern about flooding from Hurricane Matthew.

“It’s a shame. Considering this is what we’re going to face, (if) the equation of funding will not consider that, it’s a real shame,” Lopez said.

Palm Bay Deputy Mayor Tres Holton said that may change politically, noting how polluted Lake Okeechobee discharges became a statewide issue. Kamm agreed, noting that sea level rise is already impacting Miami Beach.

However, Kamm said it is difficult to justify additional road construction costs based on 2100 projections. He cited SR 520 as an example.

“The first question I ask is, ‘OK, how high do you want to raise it? On what basis do you pick a number? What’s the science behind the water out there to determine how high it should be raised?’ “ Kamm said.

“It’s one thing between saying, ‘Let’s raise it,’ and another thing to get it to the point where you’re designing an improvement where you really need specific information,” he said.

Contact South Brevard Watchdog Reporter Rick Neale at 321-242-3638, rneale@floridatoday.com or follow @RickNeale1 on Twitter.