City coastal staff presented a Dune Master Plan to the Deerfield Beach City Commission on April 1, saying staff will begin implementation and seek funding during fiscal year 2026 budget workshops.

The plan, presented by Patrick Bartis, the city's coastal coordinator, calls for design standards and maintenance guidelines, 4–8 foot buffers from the grassy berm, angled access points, annual inspections, and use of public-private partnerships and stakeholder engagement. Bartis said staff held multiple public workshops and a public survey that generated more than 700 responses.

Why it matters: City officials said dunes will trap wind-blown sand, reduce the spread of sand onto the grassy berm and roadways, and serve as a natural line of defense during elevated wind events or storm surge. Bartis said the plan aims to replace the current year-round windscreen — which many residents dislike — with maintained dune vegetation that captures sand on the beach instead of on city streets.

Broward County and local nonprofit partners described available support. Mark Hartman, who runs Broward County’s dune grant program, said the county provides $50,000 a year in $5,000 dune grants for restoration and new dune establishment and partners with groups like the Audubon Society on plantings. Lee Gottlieb of South Florida Audubon and Adopt a Dune said his group can help recruit volunteers, corporate partners and funding to assist the city.

Commissioners and members of the public pressed staff on several implementation details: the proposed dune width, plant height and visual impact; whether dunes would obstruct ocean views from the grassy berm; access and egress for beachgoers, including elderly visitors; and whether alternative hard structures such as concrete walls or longer jetties had been considered and permitted.

Bartis said the plan limits dune spread using post-and-rope boundaries, trimming overgrown vegetation to maintain six feet of cleared access where needed, and that typical dune plantings on Deerfield Beach do not grow taller than roughly four feet in the city’s experience. He said the Florida Department of Environmental Protection issued a permit allowing trimming where dune vegetation had spread landward.

Tom Konik, a resident who said he submitted a written analysis, criticized the report’s survey and said the project would use roughly 28 feet of beachfront width in the central beach area and could remove approximately 33,600 square feet of public sand in that zone; he said the central beach area under discussion represents less than 18% of the city’s 6,700 linear feet of coastline. Bartis and Commissioner Hudak said earlier drafts included narrower restrictions and that staff proposed a maximum of 20 feet in some cases; Hudak noted dunes in place for about 10 years have not exceeded the height of the current windscreen in photographs presented to the commission.

Staff said the first implementation project is anticipated for fall 2025 and that staff will request funding during FY26 budget workshops. No formal vote was required; the commission heard the presentation and opened it to public comment during the meeting.