Levees near S96C water control structure closed to public during rehabilitation project
Public access is prohibited near the S-96C water control structure in the Upper St. Johns River Basin during a refurbishment project.
Public access is prohibited near the S-96C water control structure in the Upper St. Johns River Basin during a refurbishment project.
PALM BAY, Fla., Jan. 27, 2020 — The St. Johns River Water Management District has closed public access to levees near the water control structure known as S-96C in the headwaters of the St. Johns River in Indian River County. The district is currently refurbishing the structure and issued the closure for safety reasons.
Airboat ramps west and north of S-96C remain open to the public during the refurbishment, but the levee between the two ramps is closed to public access until the project is completed. A section of levee that extends 300 yards south of S-96C will also be closed due to the construction of a temporary spillway, which will be removed and restored, when the rehab of S96C is complete.
The restoration of S-96C requires the construction of a coffer dam to hold back water while work crews restore the concrete, wingwalls, gate and hardware associated with the structure. S-96C is the primary outlet for Blue Cypress Lake and Blue Cypress Marsh Conservation Area. When the structure is open, water drains north into the St. Johns Marsh Conservation Area.
The $2 million project is expected to be completed by the end of July 2020.
In 2019, the district completed the rehabilitation of a similar structure nearby known as S-96B. That structure sends naturally treated water from the St. Johns Water Management Area in Indian River County north to the Three Forks Marsh Conservation Area in Brevard County, a scenic open marsh west of the Palm Bay city limit.