Posted on December 12, 2025
MADEIRA BEACH — Relief is finally coming soon to John’s Pass.
The project to dredge John’s Pass took a step forward recently when city commissioners voted to approve a contract with Bayside Dredging for almost $1.3 million.
The city was awarded a state appropriation of roughly $1.5 million in 2023 to do the work.
The grant work plan for the project highlighted the urgency, stating that the buildup had “damaged infrastructure, threatened public safety, and cost the City of Madeira Beach a loss in valuable tourism dollars,” in addition to posing “significant public risks to recreational swimmers and commercial boaters.”
Thanks to an innovative solution by city staff, the work is also expected to be done within budget.
Director of Public Works Megan Wepfer told commissioners during the Nov. 25 meeting that the original base bid required the city to pay high costs to haul the dredged material — approximately 12,900 cubic yards of sand — to the Pinellas County landfill, a costly Class 1 disposal site.
Instead, staff proposed an alternate bid to repurpose the material locally. The city recently acquired a 4.5-acre parcel at 555 150th Ave., and staff realized this property could serve as the ideal receiving site.
“After we acquired the property and after doing inspections at the new property, (Community Development Director) Marci (Forbes) had a great idea that we would take the sand to that property and we would grade the property properly, because right now it’s not graded very well,” Wepfer said.
By using the sand, which contains too many shells for environmentally sensitive beach nourishment but is perfectly acceptable for site elevation, the city will avoid significant landfill fees.
The Bayside Dredging alternate bid came in nearly $1.7 million less than the base bid, bringing the final cost to $1.29 million.
After paying for the Construction Engineering and Inspection services, the city should have still some money to spare, Wepfer said.
Mayor Anne-Marie Brooks was quick to praise the staff’s resourcefulness in navigating the multiyear project.
“Good job, because this has taken forever through no fault of yours, so I’m happy to see it coming to an end.”
Business owners who spoke at the meeting emphasized how rapidly conditions have been worsening. The sand accumulation has dangerously narrowed the channel, increasing water current power and threatening local boats and commercial traffic.
Dylan Hubbard, vice president and co-owner of Hubbard’s Marina, stressed the urgency during the public hearing.
“I just fully support moving forward on this as soon as we can to get the relief that John’s Pass desperately needs from that sand buildup underneath the bridge,” Hubbard said.
He said the problem is escalating due to external projects.
“Right now, we’re seeing the sand buildup at an exponential rate due to that beach renourishment project. … The sooner this project can get rolling, the less sand will be there,” Hubbard added.
The project will officially remove sand accumulation on the north side of the John’s Pass inlet and the northern shoal, restoring necessary depth and flow to the waterway.
The dredging is scheduled to begin in January, but Wepfer said the start date is dependent on the completion of Pinellas County’s existing dredging project near the channel, which is expected to wrap up by the end of December.
The city has already received the necessary primary permits from the Army Corps of Engineers and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, which have been active since the project’s planning phases.
The only remaining regulatory steps are securing the final modifications to those permits and obtaining a permit from Pinellas County to officially change the sand disposal site to the city’s new property. A site visit with the county is scheduled for Dec. 11.
