Debris removal in Indian Rocks Beach expected to cost $1.5M, officials say

INDIAN ROCKS BEACH — Several city officials and dozens of residents, including state Sen. Nick DiCeglie, packed the gutted Indian Rocks Beach Public Library building for a hurricane recovery news conference Oct. 22.

The event began amid sawdust-strewn floors with prayers bestowed upon the barrier island community that was decimated by hurricanes Helene and Milton in late September and early October.

Following introductory remarks from Mayor Denise Houseberg and words of hope from local clergy, City Manager Gregg Mims provided an update on the city's storm recovery, which saw Helene's record storm surge flood nearly every structure on the island when the Category 3 hurricane grazed the Gulf Coast on Sept. 26.

"Three days before Helene hit, we began to prepare," Mims said, noting the work involved relocating city trucks over the Walsingham Bridge, a move he estimated saved them around $750,000.

Mims said staff had started moving the documents and computer equipment they salvaged from City Hall into three adjacent rented trailers when Milton hit two weeks after Helene.

"We had to remove it all and reverse everything," he said, adding that after Milton hit on Oct. 9, cleanup efforts went into overdrive, as soggy storm debris from Helene remained piled up on nearly every street.

"We went from eight (debris removal) trucks to 38 trucks (after Milton), and to date we've removed more than 1,195 truckloads, or 25,000 cubic yards, of debris," Mims said. He estimated they would spend around $1.5 million in debris removal from the city's $4.5 million in fund reserves.

"To put that into perspective, today Clearwater has eight trucks and Largo has three. But we have 38."

Mims said the city's healthy reserves, which more than doubled in the past decade, combined with good insurance and a plan to "aggressively go after reimbursements" from the Federal Emergency Management Agency would greatly aid the city's recovery efforts.

DiCeglie, who has lived in Indian Rocks Beach since 1997, said city officials' approach throughout the storms should be a model for other barrier island communities.

"Seeing 34 dump trucks lined up on Gulf Boulevard at 8 that Monday morning, that sent a loud message to every one of us that the leadership in this city understands what the priorities are," he said.

DiCeglie spoke of seeing neighbors with the "same look of sadness on their faces, scared of not knowing when the pain was going to end," and he promised to do anything he could to help the barrier island rebuild.

"There is a unique character in Indian Rocks Beach," he said. "And I am extremely worried that if enough people leave, and enough people that don't buy in to the character come back in, we're going to lose who we are as a community. And it's going to be my No. 1 priority come the next legislative session."

Mayor Houseberg agreed that rebuilding the city and retaining its character is atop everyone's to-do list.

"As a small city, with a monumental task ahead of us, we are doing our best. The timeline for completion is long. The amount of work to be done is monumental. But I'm more certain than ever that we will make it," she said.

Afterward, local trauma counselor Christine Bergman spoke about the importance of seeking help.

"The reason I appreciate these opportunities to share my information is because there's a lot of stigmas attached to asking for mental health services," Bergman said after Houseberg recommended people utilize her free Community Trauma Recovery mental health services.

"But I think we all recognize this is tough, and we can't do it alone. So, I really hope people reach out and they aren't as afraid to ask for help after everything they have been through."

Storm recovery notes Mims detailed several key elements of the city's storm recovery, including that voting in Tuesday's election has been moved from Indian Rocks Beach City Hall to Belleair Beach City Hall, and the regular City Commission meetings will be held in the Pelican Room at the Holiday Inn Harbourside for the next few months.

All but four of the city's 17 beach walkovers are in the process of being removed, Mims said, noting most of the entrances will feature "direct access and no steps until something happens with beach renourishment." Mims said he would discourage using the beach as the cleanup efforts continue.

"I would say we need another couple of weeks," Mims said.

Though Kolb Park and Chic a Si Park should reopen soon, Mims said the Indian Rocks Beach Nature Preserve will take longer due to an ongoing boardwalk replacement project and an "environmental sewage" situation.

Regular solid waste pickup continues to operate on schedule, with slight delays, while the city's recycling service has been suspended until Dec. 1.

The city library, which was wiped out by Helene, will receive help from the Largo Public Library in the form of a weekly bookmobile that will set up in front of City Hall.

"This used to the library, and it will be again," Mims said.

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