Tybee Island Beach Management Plan Prepared by Mary A. Elfner (www.maryelfner.com) for the City of Tybee Island (www.cityoftybee.org) September 2005 The source of funding for this project are The Coastal Management Program of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources and The U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. TABLE OF CONTENTS Signature Page .......................................................................................................1 INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................2 OVERARCHING ISSUES ....................................................................................2 Barrier Island Dynamics .......................................................................................2 History and Development of Tybee Island ..........................................................3 Demographics .........................................................................................................3 Planning and Zoning .............................................................................................4 Beach Restoration and Nourishment ...................................................................6 Moving Sand from Local Areas of Accretion to Local Areas of Erosion ...............7 Public/Private Ownership of Accreting Areas of Beach ....................................8 Beach Monitoring ..................................................................................................8 Beach Safety ...........................................................................................................9 Environment .........................................................................................................10 Wildlife ..................................................................................................................10 Shorebirds .......................................................................................................10 Sea Turtles .......................................................................................................11 Plants .....................................................................................................................12 Scrub-Shrub Trimming Guidelines ..............................................................12 Sea Oats ...........................................................................................................13 Greenspace .............................................................................................................13 Water Quality ........................................................................................................14 Beach Water Quality Monitoring .................................................................14 Stormwater Management ..............................................................................15 Water Quantity/Conservation ................................................................................16 Hurricane Preparedness .........................................................................................16 Dogs on the Beach ................................................................................................16 Beach Cleaning and Maintenance ......................................................................17 Tourism .................................................................................................................17 Traditional Tourism ...............................................................................................18 Ecotourism .............................................................................................................18 Roads and Parking ..............................................................................................19 Beach Access ........................................................................................................19 Redevelopment Plans for Tybrisa and the Strand ...........................................20 BEACH COMMUNITIES ..................................................................................21 Savannah River Beach ........................................................................................21 North Beach ..........................................................................................................24 Front Beach ..........................................................................................................27 Beach Business District .......................................................................................30 South Tip ..............................................................................................................33 Back River ............................................................................................................35 ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES .................................................................37 Planning and Zoning ...........................................................................................38 Beach Restoration and Nourishment .................................................................38 Page i Federal ...................................................................................................................38 State .......................................................................................................................39 Local ......................................................................................................................40 Beach Monitoring ................................................................................................41 Federal ...................................................................................................................41 State .......................................................................................................................41 Local ......................................................................................................................41 Citizens and Tourists .............................................................................................42 Beach Cleaning and Maintenance ......................................................................42 State .......................................................................................................................42 Local ......................................................................................................................43 Citizens and Tourists .............................................................................................43 Environment .........................................................................................................43 Wildlife ..................................................................................................................43 Plants .....................................................................................................................45 Greenspace .............................................................................................................45 Water Quality ........................................................................................................46 Water Quantity/Conservation ................................................................................47 Dogs on the Beach .................................................................................................48 POLICIES AND LAWS ......................................................................................48 Federal ..................................................................................................................48 State .......................................................................................................................49 Local ......................................................................................................................51 RECOMMENDATIONS ....................................................................................52 Acknowledgements ..............................................................................................55 Literature Cited and Supporting Documents ...................................................56 Appendix A: Beach Monitoring Responsibilities .............................................57 Appendix B: Tybee Beach Sand Management Players & Projects ................59 Appendix C: DNR Standard Conditions for Dune Crossovers ......................63 Appendix D: DNR Scrub-Shrub Trimming Guidelines .................................64 Appendix E: DNR Guidance on Establishing Dune Paths .............................66 Appendix F: DNR Beach Cleaning Letter ........................................................67 Appendix G: Wintering Piping Plover Critical Habitat ..................................69 Appendix H: Georgia DNR Sand Fence Guidelines .........................................70 Appendix I: Recommendation Matrix ..............................................................72 Appendix J: Beach Access Points and Parking Locations on Tybee .............79 Page ii Signature Page The City of Tybee Island and the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Coastal Resources Division have partnered to create this Tybee Island Beach Management Plan. The City of Tybee Island has asked its citizens to define their beach manage- ment interests and priorities and has given fair consideration to the inclusion of those interests and priorities in