Marco Condo Dwellers Maintain Sand Dunes to Retain Beach Views

Marco Island condo owners are regaining beach views following a period of proverbial sour grapes over tall sea grapes - and other sand dune vegetation - that city officials prevented trimming for months. 

City of Marco Island officials began granting sea dune maintenance permits by February after several months of numerous permits being held in limbo.  

The city’s floodplain coordinator at the time, Kelli DeFedericis, had said the permits were awaiting more information from residents. Meanwhile, condo owners balked that they shouldn’t have to provide any further information. Instead, they need their permits approved to trim vegetation in the dunes with sea grapes taller than 10 feet blocking their views of the beach and ruining their sunsets. Many condo owners wanted vegetation trimmed to about six feet, instead, as was permitted years prior. 

“Units on the first floor have beautiful views of the beach. That’s why they spent millions of dollars. We have a virtual jungle in front of our building. We have sea oats reaching 15 feet,” said Dave Fairburn, a resident of Royal Seafarer Condominium.  

Fairburn said he was concerned that city staff was not working to protect their views.   

“That’s not good news for homeowners on the beach. We’re all here for the views,” he said.  

Marco Island residents pleaded with City Council for relief via numerous emails in fall of 2024 leading up to a Council meeting on January 6 when the then-floodplain coordinator, DeFedericis, made a presentation about the status of numerous pending sand dune maintenance permits. DeFedericis made the presentation days before beginning a new job outside of the city, she said. 

As of January, permit applications submitted in the fall and winter had been neither approved nor denied but rather were awaiting more details from applicants, DeFedericis had said. 

“The rules haven’t changed. We hadn’t been enforcing them the way we should have,” she said. 

The condominium owners and/or managers were to submit either land surveys or new reports from a private engineer, DeFedericis had advised. She needed to know the dunes were managed in a way to continue storm protection, she said.  

Property insurance, storm resilience, and grants were at stake if dunes were not managed properly, DeFedericis said.  

"Vegetation plays a vital role in stabilizing sand dunes and protecting coastal areas from erosion. In designated sand dune areas, maintaining a healthy and robust layer of vegetation is crucial to the structure of the dune as it helps absorb and reduce the impact of the storm surges, tidal action, and flooding,” DeFedericis advised Council during her presentation on the matter in January.  

The 2024 flood maps of Marco Island indicated a need to confirm if sand dunes and the vegetation were managed appropriately, she said to Council. 

The National Flood Insurance Program is implemented by FEMA, Federal Emergency Management Agency.  

By February, sand dune maintenance permits were able to be approved without new surveys or engineering reports when city staff learned of a differing interpretation from FEMA than DeFedericis interpretation, said Marco Island Director of Community Affairs Dan Smith. 

Florida Department of Environmental Protection still mandates that vegetation cannot be trimmed below 6 feet in height, Smith said. 

Amber Stonik is now the city staff member who reviews and issues vegetation permits, Smith said. 

Nancy Richie, who is now a private environmental consultant and was formerly an environmental specialist with the city for many years, said the permit delays were caused by misinterpretation of the regulations.  

"She [DeFedericis] incorrectly interpreted the FEMA rules in this situation,” said Richie in an email to news reporters that echoed Richie’s stance shared with Council previously.  

Richie urged the city officials to grant permits as they had in prior years. 

"The truth of the matter is that it was a ‘demand’ from the condominium property owners and managers and I and other environmental consultants that City staff, specifically Kelli DeFedericis, understand the FEMA rules she was enforcing,” Richie wrote in the email. 

Richie provided the distinctions that ultimately allowed the city to begin granting permits again following DEP confirmation. Thus, condominium dwellers can again see the beach, even from the ground floor, with dune vegetation maintenance back in action.  

DeFedericis was interpreting FEMA rules that govern development as being applicable to dune maintenance when they are not, Richie advised.  

Chapter 26 is for development purposes, not annual maintenance, she explained.  

Richie stated that Marco Island’s dunes are healthy, with a variety of native vegetation species, ground cover, and mid-story and canopy trees on acres of habitat.