'THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS OUR SAND': Counties say beach restoration is key to oil spill recovery plans

SANTA ROSA BEACH — Beach renourishment is the key to Northwest Florida’s post-oil spill recovery, local officials said Friday.

Administrators, attorneys and commissioners from Escambia to Gulf counties met in South Walton to discuss their unified response to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

“The biggest issue facing all seven of us is our sand,” said Escambia County Commissioner Grover C. Robinson. “Time is of the essence. We can’t wait for this.”

Okaloosa County Commissioner James Campbell agreed, adding that Okaloosa is “shovel-ready other than the lawsuits.”

“This is our biggest draw to our tourists, and we all know the importance of this,” Campbell said.

Only a few companies are capable of doing renourishment work, and it would be ideal to line them up for several projects in the area, he added.

“We would all save money,” Campbell said. “I think we’re all on the right track.”

Northwest Florida’s beaches took a major hit during the oil spill, which translated into millions of dollars in lost revenue across the region.

Officials from the seven counties say BP should start paying for new sand sooner rather than later.

“It’s critical for us to send a message to BP that beach renourishment is vital,” Robinson said.

County officials said they also want BP to help pay for core sampling and other research needed on local beaches.

State Rep. Doug Broxson told officials they need to formalize their coalition and view themselves as “giant slayers” as they negotiate with BP.

“We have to be a voice that’s heard all the way to Tallahassee,” said Broxson, R-Gulf Breeze. “We speak as one voice. … If we don’t do that, we’ve lost.”

Tony Kennon, the mayor of Orange Beach, Ala., attended the meeting and encouraged county officials to get aggressive with BP about reimbursements.

“This is an event that was unprecedented,” said Kennon, who already is trying to secure 2011 reimbursements for his city. “This is about us fighting for our culture and what we deserve.”

County officials agreed they want to recoup revenue from lost sales tax, but need the state’s help to do it.

Okaloosa County Administrator Jim Curry urged the group to make it clear to the state that the counties expect to get their share of the any reimbursement for lost revenue.

“We don’t need to sit back and assume it’s going to be handled,” he said.

Officials also discussed the possibility of filing claims for lost property tax revenue — a complicated process that counties must initiate within three years of the oil spill’s impact on property values.

Campbell said the region’s property appraisers need to work together to assess any dip in property values.

“We all need to be on the same page … and try to make those assessments,” he said.

The group also agreed to explore the idea of eventually turning their loose coalition into a nonprofit arm of Florida’s Great Northwest and to join forces with officials in Alabama and Mississippi to lobby Washington for more recovery money.