The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted Tuesday to submit a request to use $7 million awarded following the BP/Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill in 2010 to help cover the cost to rebuild the Fort Myers Beach Pier.
The pier was destroyed by Hurricane Ian in 2022. While FEMA Public Assistance has approved funding to replace the pier, those funds are limited to rebuilding the pier exactly the way it was before the storm. The new pier will be longer, wider, more resilient and equipped with additional shade structures. Although the FEMA PA award has not yet been finalized, the shortfall between the final cost of construction and the amount of federal disaster assistance is currently estimated at about $6 million.
The Board of County Commissioners approved over $17 million to build the longer and wider pier back in June of 2024. $11 million for the project was planned to come from Tourist Development Council reserve funds. The balance was coming from FEMA.The new pier will be 1,000 feet long and 12 feet wide. That’s 71% longer and 50% wider than the pier destroyed by the storm.
After the Gulf oil spill, Lee County was awarded funds under the RESTORE Act Spill Impact Component, administered through Florida’s State Expenditure Plan managed by the Gulf Consortium. These funds are designated for projects that promote economic recovery, tourism, recreational fishing and community resilience in Gulf Coast communities.
Aren’t the BP funds restricted to destruction and economic losses caused by the oil spill?