Originally published on Gulf Coast News by Gina Tomlinson on October 16, 2025
“My initial thought was, that’s going in front of wetlands,” said Joan Perkett, who often kayaks near the marina. “They’re extending in front of wetlands. What’s going on there?”
Perkett calls herself a “tree-hugging nature lover” and says even lawful projects deserve public attention. She worries the work could disturb endangered smalltooth sawfish, which use this stretch of water in the Glover Bight area of the river, as a nursery.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission confirms that Glover Bight is one of only a handful of remaining nurseries for sawfish in Florida.
“It’s a very sensitive area, but the project itself doesn’t have direct impacts — they’re not clearing mangroves or dredging,” said Joe Cavanaugh with Calusa Waterkeeper. “My biggest concern is that there’s no further development of the basin. After these 41 new slips, that area’s at capacity in terms of impacts to sawfish.”
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