JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. – A major project that could impact every resident and visitor who steps foot on the sandy shores of Jacksonville Beach was voted to be put on pause at Monday night’s city council meeting
The proposal pertains to the repair, or replacement, of 20 dune walkovers along the beach identified by engineers as “in need of demolition or reconstruction.”
City leaders voted to reject all bids from contractors. There was a lengthy discussion at the meeting about the language used in the bidding process.
One bidder filed a protest, but the board decided to reject the three bids with a 5 to 2 vote.
If approved, nearly $250,000 would have been spent on the dunes' makeover.
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Along with daily wear and tear caused by foot traffic, severe weather events like hurricanes or tropical storms can also significantly damage and shift dunes while erosion from tidal changes can undermine their stability.
While walking over one of them on 1st Avenue, Judy Sterling, a tourist who frequents Jacksonville Beach, described the platform as “wiggly.” Another tourist, Steven Saul, said, a walkover he went through to get to the beach looked “a little rotted.” Jacksonville Beach resident Michael Vega agreed, calling them “beat” and “weathered.”
Saul added that while he doesn’t feel the walkover is unstable, he can tell it’s time to replace, or at least restore, them to remain functional and reliable.
City officials tell News4JAX they would like to have 13 walkovers replaced or repaired by 2025. The other seven that were identified by engineers would be slated for repair in 2026, pending city approval.
Among the 13 that could be fixed in 2025, the list that the City of Jacksonville Beach provided to News4JAX includes walkovers from 10th Avenue North to 19th Avenue North, and 14th Avenue South to 30th Avenue South.
In 2026, demolition and reconstruction would have occured on walkovers from 1st Avenue South to 12th Avenue South.
Michael Vega is mindful that the renovations could entice more people to come to Jacksonville Beach, saying he doesn’t “want it overrun by tourism,” but acknowledges that it could make the area look “safer and cleaner.”
“Money makes it look better,” he said.